Fallout 4 Aftermath
by Rick O'Shay
Summary: This story is set six years after the end of Fallout 4 (the game). We track the lives, loves and loses of the Vault Dweller and all of his companions as they move forward with their lives in the Commonwealth.
1. Chapter 1

fallout 4 aftermath By Rick O'Shay.

Squire Sherri Stone waited hesitantly on the flight deck of the Prydwen she had only just turned fifteen years old and this was her first assignment. Today they would welcome a very special guest. Behind Sherri, along both sides of the flight deck stood Knights in highly polished T-60 power armour, gigantic steel monoliths stood motionlessly to attention, it made her shiver, not the cold wind that whipped through the open flight deck, but that she had been chosen to meet and greet an ambassador from the High Council.

The whole of the Prydwen was in lock down, page boys and girls were busying themselves making sure every tiny piece of the Airship was as it should be, the other Squires who were she was sure, most envious of Sherri. They would have had to polish those knights armour, and would most like still be sweeping out dark corners or worse slopping out latrines.

The airship from top to bottom, stern to bow, was a light with rumour and gossip as word spread amongst the junior ranks especially those younger pages. This was a visitor from the Western Chapter of the Brotherhood, from the High Council, and he had arrived in the Commonwealth aboard his flagship the Valkyrie.

The Valkyrie was made of silk the pages would tell you, and all her metal work was gold or silver even her running lights instead of being coloured glass like the Prydwen, were made from Diamonds or other precious gem stones.

Here we are, thought Sherri, who incidentally hadn't stopped grinning from ear to ear since she was given this posting, standing on the open flight deck of the Prydwen dressed in her brand new out of the bag uniform, and she felt every bit the part. However, that didn't stop her from patting herself down several times or from removing pieces of invisible lint, much to the amusement of the Knight's on duty with her.

It had never bothered the Squire being either this high up in the air or that felling that some had of being so totally exposed, yes they all had mag-treads that magnetised their boots on contact with the decking but it was still hundreds of feet above the tallest buildings in view, with only waist height railings either side to stop a person falling over the edge and to a certain death.

No more time to idyll Sherri thought as she looked out towards the open ocean on catching sight of the Verti-Bird as it approached the Prydwen. The dull almost silent whooshing sound made by the twin turbo shaft engines allowed her to ghost past the underside of the flight deck effortlessly as she made her final approach.

Sherri's stomach churned as the spot light of attention shone on her for now, what if she tripped on the decking and fell into the Guest? Who was this esteemed guest that warranted so much spit and polish? Why was the Prydwen on lock down?

There was the smallest of clunks along with a back rush of exhaled warm air from her engines, the Verti-Bird had finally docked.

In her mind the young Squire could hear ceremonial music playing where there was none, in fact, the Prydwen was a warship and therefore be-refed of any type of pomp or ceremony. Even so it didn't mean that everyone aboard this elegant instrument of war wasn't shoulders back head high proud to be serving on her.

The small step down from the V-Bird unfurled and a foot appeared, glinting in the sun light, followed by a leg and then the rest of the body. He stood for a moment taking time to look around, Sherri wondered what he must have thought at as he ran his steely gaze over the scene ahead of him.

The figure that now stood only feet from her took Sherri's breathe away.

Enshrined by the sun and standing at least seven feet tall in his highly polished power armour, power armour that dripped with gold gilding all around its edges. Unlike anything Sherri had ever seen before this power armour was covered in parts by an incredibly detailed and ornate silk flowing robe, and off the shoulders drooped yet more silk to cover the upper arms. He wasn't wearing his helmet either, otherwise how could anyone see that clean shaven - chiselled jawline or sculptured high forehead framed by greased back predominately black hair that sported silver grey swept back-sides.

The page boys were right, this was no ordinary guest, her eyes wide as owls as he glided effortlessly towards her. The gentle breeze picking up his long flowing silk robe and epaulettes only adding to his mystique.

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'Welcome to the Prydwen Sir,' the young girl rasped.

The newcomer looked down at Squire, his eyes buried deep into her very soul like twin laser rifles as his head moved ever so slightly upward from the tip of her toes, all four foot eight and a half inches to the top of her tonsured basin blond cut hair, Sherri just wanted to melt right off that flight deck and disappear into the Boston main channel below. For his part the immaculately dressed guest never ceased to enjoy the elation he felt when he graced those who served him with his magnificent presence, especially if it were there first time, young or old it made no difference, it was just a pity that his platform this day was a rusty old airship that looked well past its repair date.

Reaching out a fatherly hand he gently cupped the small oval face of the squire, his smile so warm and friendly. Enchanting in fact, if the look on the squire's face was anything to go by.

She closed her eyes briefly feeling both the warmth and the strength from his large rough hand, his thumb caressed her left cheek and yet his four fingers moved swiftly under her chin holding her head vice like for the briefest of time.

'Now son – he enquired- how long have you been a squire?' He asked, his tongue flickering over his dry cracked lips.

'I'm not …Sir!' Sherri was confined to a whimper as she replied, knowing that for some reason she had so disappointed him.

'You're not?' He asked quizzically, now it was the magnificent newcomers turn to be wrong footed.

'I mean I am a squire Sir and this is my first day on duty, but I'm not err, sorry, Sir.' The words just seemed to tumble out of her mouth in whatever order they saw fit.

Taken aback for a moment, flustered even, the High Council himself fumbled for words.

'Oh! Yes of course, such an angelic look. It was merely a slip of the tongue my dear child, enough of this now, I'm sure I am expected somewhere on this ship.' The mood was gone the veneer smashed for both parties and for two very different reasons.

Elder Maxson was waiting in his briefing room when the soft rapping noise came on his door. Enter! He barked knowing full well who was about to be introduced to him, but this was all part of the game, a show that would hopefully not go unnoticed before such an esteemed guest.

'Squire Stone, is it?' Maxson enquired as though he'd plucked the name from thin air.

'Yes Sir!' The reply was short and sharp but delivered perfectly.

'What business do we have today?' Maxson tried to make it seem like he was the busiest man in the world although he was standing alone in the middle of his room.

'A Visitor, Sir! Should I show him in, Sir?' Sherri wondered if she should bow or curtesy. Sherri was a diligent student and spent many an hour pouring over old history holo tapes in the Prydwen's vast archives.

'Of course and be quick about it! I'm sure the Elder hasn't flown all this way to stand in the corridor all day!' Maxson tried to exert an air of superiority that just didn't come naturally to him.

'Yes Sir! I mean No sir, sorry sir.' Sherri was stung by the Elder's veracity and tone, she cursed her stupid tongue, if only it had been trained so rigorously as the rest of her had!

High Council member Howard Hartley floated into the briefing room as elegantly as if he were walking down the isle of some high vaulted palace or Cathedral.

'Maxson my dear friend,' he held out both arms to greet the Commander of the Prydwen. Hugging was not usually permitted anywhere in the Brotherhood but Hartley knew that and loved the reaction it got every time he did especially with these younger Elders, he liked to think of himself as their benevolent father.

'Your squire there, forgive me for noticing but it was a girl, yes?' Hartley's face tightened as he asked the question, was this a pre-planned insult? Clearly he was not amused.

Now it was Maxson's turn for a smile, just the briefest though as he realised that Hartley would have preferred a male Squire, information was most certainly power, however, was this a personal preference or some old school protocol?

'Yes, High Councillor.' Maxson continued somewhat more emboldened by this small victory. 'Squire Sherri Stone, she was given to us as a foundling seven years ago, and has risen through the junior ranks to finish as a page leader in every field in her class.'

'Quite so I'm sure Maxson, but honestly has she mastered the seven points?' Quite why Hartley failed to accept this girl was now beginning to irk Arthur Maxson, perhaps it was a personal preference after all.

Squires were required to master the seven points of agilities; piloting a Verti-Bird, swimming, and diving, shooting seven different weapons, climbing and most important, participating in tournaments befitting a Knight, for example; Fencing, marksman, wrestling, and finally Power Armour frame maneuvers.

'As I said, Stone finished top of her class, the very brightest of her academic year. Naturally though, the Verti-Bird training was completed in a simulator.' Elder Maxson spoke so affectionately that Hartley wondered if this girl was his own, or was Maxson mocking him, no matter how discreet one might care to be, there was always the possibility that other would find out.

'What about the eighth requirement Maxson?' Hartley took delicious delight in exacting a response for this little tease of his. Hartley's face was a little flushed as he presented this question, for a second time he had allowed his mask to slip. Maxson however thought he had detected a flash of annoyance, as he wasn't sure, he did as every good officer did, and he played dumb.

'Eighth? High Councillor, I wasn't aware that regulations asked for an eighth discipline.'

Arthur Maxson was easing his way into this game of verbal fencing, pleased when he scored a point, even better that he out jabbed his bombastic guest.

'Oh my dear fellow! You have been away from the High Council for far to long, the eighth discipline as you call it, oh and I do like that you called it a discipline, is of course the skills these dear little ones procure in the bed chamber.' Hartley could barely contain his delight as he delivered that punch, yes it was well below the belt, but this jumped up country bumpkin deserved it. The look of horror on Maxson's face was a pretty picture indeed. Hartley was never one to back down from a winning hand, continued. 'Please don't be bashful we are both travelled and learned men are we not?'

'High Councillor I fear that you are testing me for I have never in all my service years' heard of this eighth whatever you call it, no sir, and certainly not on my ship.' Maxson was incandescent with rage and thus barely able to spit the words out of his mouth.

'No? Never mind, I'm teasing you Arthur truly – he lied – I am sorry, I was warned beforehand by the High Council that you were a sensitive type. My apologies, sixty hours aboard the Valkyrie will do that to a man. My only companions you see this time were the Outcast's, and they are such brutish fellows you know, they cannot hold their liquor and they most certainly cannot sing, but it doesn't stop them from trying to do both.'

Arthur Maxson's face contorted with sheer confusion, a sight which seemed to please Hartley immensely.

'Can I ask you something High Councillor?'

'Only if you call me Howard, Arthur, we are both of equal rank you know, so please ask away.' Though Hartley knew he was far superior it always made a beaten man feel better about himself when hearing such things said by the victor.

'Thank you Howard, may I ask how those Outcast's got re-instated? As I understood it they had committed an act of high treason and were exiled out of the Brotherhood.'

'Politics my dear fellow! As it is with these things, it always boils down to a single word, necessity. The Brotherhood are so very short on man power especially after the debacle with the New California Republic. To be perfectly honest, Arthur we have more power armour suits than we have knights to fill them.' Hartley checked himself from saying too much, he may have thought he had won this opening salvo of words, but he still did not have the measure of this man, Maxson, yet.

'Is there anything more that you can tell me about the Outcast's, Howard?' Arthur had recovered his poise but held back from going back on the offensive, his opponent in this contest was extremely well versed, and Arthur preferred an opponent rather than an adversary.

'Arthur I can only tell you that they asked to serve under your command, and that the High Council deliberated on the matter for an age before allowing them to return.' That made the frown on Maxson's face turn upside down, those noble savages had actually requested that?

Hartley allowed for a brief pause so that the little man opposite could savour this small crumb. 'Don't sell yourself short Arthur, you are highly respected in all circles and that my dear boy is why I am here in person, to hand you their reigns so to speak.'

'Howard surely the High Council did not dispatch one of its best advisers simply to convey a message as trivial as that?' Arthur was being coy as well as cautious.

Still licking your wounds the High Councillor though smugly to himself as he fumbled around with a large oversized button on a pocket that hung from his equipment belt. 'Here we are this is for you.' Hartley pulled something from the pocket.

It was a large A 4 sized brown folder that had three red wax seals upon it that were stamped over three lengths of red ribbon.

It was in that moment that Arthur realised for the first time that the Councillor was wearing silk gloves, which drew an ironic smile as he accepted the folder as though it were something to be treasured.

It read on the front of the folder in bold burgundy letters; EYES ONLY, and in smaller letters of the same colour, OPERATION POSSUM.

Now here was an interesting if underwhelming title for a covert operation, it made Arthur wonder which pompous ass had thought this up.

'I take it you have already been briefed on this operation, Howard?' Oh for the fleeting thought that Hartley had not it was almost too much to saviour.

'Of course my good man, it is actually all my idea.' With that he cocked his head slightly and smiled again, one of his smug self-congratulating smiles.

'Son of a mole rat,' was all that Arthur could think to say, but only as thoughts in his mind.

'Arthur while you have been out east doing a sterling job of things we, the High Council have implemented a few changes, to the organisation, its structure, command and control and especially the recruitment set-up. The documents you now have are a culmination of all that we, the High Council, have put into place so far. Oh and did you not hear? We have a new leader, not of the High Council but he has a casting vote over them.'

Elder Arthur Maxson could hardly believe what he was hearing, more so because he had not received one single scrap of gossip or Intel on any of this.

'We have a new leader? Who is he, where is he from? Was there a memo? Why wasn't this made known to me sooner?' Arthur's cheeks burned red such was his embarrassment.

'Now, Arthur don't act all wounded. Your operation here is held in the highest regard by everyone. You yourself are being groomed – though you wouldn't have known- for high office. Alas your twenty seven years are against you attaining such privileges yet, give it another three years, say, or as soon as Operation Possum is complete, and well who knows you could be giving me a run for my money!'

'What about Nathan Dewitt? I have made him a Paladin, second in command here in the Commonwealth. This operation may not be to his liking.'

'Yes. You elevated him rather quickly, didn't you! He said incredulously. 'I can tell you that act raised a few eyebrows, so what's his story?'

'Where do I begin honestly? He's a god damned force of nature that's what he is, single handily re-united the thirty two settlements that make up the Commonwealth.'

Grudgingly Howard cocked his head in admiration. 'Dare I even ask what he does in his spare time?'

'Well let's just say he completed every single Brotherhood mission he was sent on, including tracking down a recon squad who had been missing for three years. Howard he brought back the tags and tapes from Knight Varham and Astlin, killing every ghoul that they couldn't, before tracking down Scribe Faris whose body was in a Super-mutant settlement.'

'Did he kill them all as well?' Hartley was enjoying that Arthur's re-telling of this story filled the little man with such pride, Hartley though hated men of action, they could not be controlled in quite the same way as he would have liked.

'Oh yes, and returned a full set of T-60 power armour that those Mutants had captured.'

'Impressive Arthur. I'm sure I can't wait to meet this man.' Jumped up little prig Hartley thought to himself.

'Oh that wasn't the end of it Howard! No, then he turns up here with a very sorry looking Paladin Brandis in tow! Mad as a box of frogs he was, after three years alone in the wilderness.'

'So you made him up to a Paladin as a reward?'

You are as pathetic as he is! Hartley once more conversed in his mind with himself.

'You are god damned right I did, this guy is a walking talking certifiable legend.'

'OK, Arthur, you must understand that he is NOT Brotherhood however valiant his exploits have been. That said, we are here to carry out our orders, regarding the future of the Commonwealth. That being the case we do not under any circumstances want or need to antagonise this man. If Nathan Dewitt requests our help, we help, heck if he asks us to jump, we ask him, how high? Is that understood?'

'Absolutely!'

'So has he got any close friends in the Brotherhood?' Hartley needed to get to know his enemy.

'Knight Captain Danse, yes, and Warrant Officer Haylen.'

'I want them put under surveillance twenty four seven, along with anyone else he is close too, now tell me we have some allies? Is there anyone we can trust?'

'Allies? Nathan is an ally!' Arthur blurted out.

'Yes, of course he is, it was a poor choice of words, but you understand, the High Council will want to know as much about this man as they can and that will include those he calls friends, and those he doesn't.'

'Knight Lieutenant Rhys, he is Captain Danse's right hand man, in Recon Squad Gladius, but there is history between him and Nathan.'

'Do you know why, Arthur?'

'I too was intrigued by this notion, even more so when I found out that it was Nathan who rescued the team from a Ghoul assault.'

'Rescued?'

'Yes, they had lost one man already and then Rhys was surrounded and badly wounded. Nathan appeared, waded straight into the fray, saved Rhys and even patched him up afterwards like he was a full blown field medic!'

'Rhys resented that I take it?'


	2. Chapter 2

Shane kind Fallout chapter 2

CHAPTER TWO

Newly promoted Knight Captain Danse had spent all evening and most of the night since returning from the Prydwen in the company of the Editor-in-Chief of the Massachusetts based newspaper called 'Publik Occurrences'.

Ordinarily this might be cause for some concern but as Knight Lieutenant Rhys was trying to explain to his co-companion during this recon mission for Lancer Captain Kells.

Rhys was, by way of an explanation, describing the Editor-in-Chief as a beautiful nineteen year old brunette who had been friends with the Knight Captain since she was fourteen years old. She is intelligent, charming, sophisticated, and did he mention, drop dead gorgeous!

Heck he went on to say, everyone on the Prydwen considers them as a practically married couple, she was …

Frey chirped in, 'I got the message Sir!'

'This was a mistake a ridiculous order and an intrusion that should never had been authorized.' It was the first time Rhys had ever questioned an order he had been given, and the irony was that it was Hartley and not Maxson who had issued it.

The young Knight Roosevelt Frey was in awe of the Lieutenant and had spent most of the recon mission asking him if the many stories he had heard about him, Danse and the Paladin were true. Lieutenant Rhys for his part was just really happy to be doing anything other than spy on his closest friend. Frey was a fresh faced wet behind the ears recruit out of Adams Airforce base who had never fired a shot in anger and this was his first field mission.

This, thought Rhys was going to be a very long night. It turned out to be just that!

Knight Captain Danse and Natalie Wright both knew of the hushed whispers, it was a great cover story, the irony of which was not lost on Natalie. However, they were not as everybody thought engaged in any physical relationship even though they had taken to the Captains private quarters.

They were in fact going over all the new information coming into the Prydwen concerning something codenamed 'Operation Possum'. Danse had a bad feeling about this secret operation from the moment he had found out about it, but taking that out of the confines of the Prydwen or the ground base at former Boston International Airport would have been career suicide or possibly worse. So he had to bide his time, when he was able, he brought what he could with him to his new posting back at the Cambridge Police Department Headquarters building,. This was where he had planned to meet Natalie in her _role_ as his girlfriend rather than raising any suspicion amongst his fellow officers at base that it might be for another reason.

Operation Possum involved bringing the Commonwealth back into the 'National fold' by any means necessary, something that shocked and horrified both he and Nat not least because Danse knew that there wasn't a 'National fold' as such anymore, every former state in the old United States was pretty much on its own and the Brotherhood had become something of an insular exclusive organisation that owed allegiance only to its own members, notwithstanding that most of them lived above ground in Airships!

Natalie knew this information was so explosive that it had to get to the Minutemen Headquarters at the old Fort Independence. That went without saying and even as her eyes met with those of Danse's' they both knew that she had to be the one to take it there.

Never mind the risks involved, Natalie had not stepped one foot inside the old fort in the five years since her older sister Piper had been killed, fighting alongside the Brotherhood and the Minutemen against the Institute. Alongside in fact, her lover and now General of the Minutemen, he whose name she would not dare to allow herself to think, let alone speak.

So much pain and anger in equal measures that struggle in her mind would almost age her before Danse's eyes. He knew all of this but understood none of it. That said, there was no other way.

The Knight Captain was not so stupid as to think he wouldn't be followed the moment he did leave the Prydwen, he suspected that he was being monitored for the time being at least just because of his association with the Vault-Dweller, that is why it had to be Natalie.

Knight Frey was taking his turn on watch when he was alerted to activity taking place just below his concealed position.

Miss Wright's car had been brought round to the front entrance of the Police department building, by her driver. Frey hurriedly woke Lieutenant Rhys from his slumber, they were hidden in the remains of the building opposite. Danse spotted the movement from just above his eye line and quietly whispered to Natalie, she turned to Danse and wrapped her arms around his neck, 'let's give them at least a bit of a show shall we?' she whispered back. Rhys shuck his head on seeing Natalie embrace Danse, tightly pulling his lips close to hers, he was at least a couple of inches taller than she was and that caused her to step up on one leg allow the hem of her already short skirt to ride up some more.

The young rookie Knight was transfixed at the sight of female flesh and silk stockings, which was until he received a swift slap across the back of his head.

Rhys barked under his breathe, 'Do that look like a traitor to you boy? I told you he was one of us!'

For his part, and he kept it to himself, Frey would have given up all the secrets he had for another peek like that!

Danse bid Natalie good day his eyes never leaving hers for a moment.

Natalie wondered just what going on beneath those deep blue pools. Isn't it funny how things turn out she thought? Natalie found Danse to be interesting, no, intriguing, not unattractive, but not her type, she loved him dearly, but as a sister would her brother. That didn't mean a girl can't feel loved or wanted in a sexual kind of way either, just a little bit.

Danse, for his part in all of this, had only once ever even so much as tried to flirt with her, and that was three years ago on her sixteenth birthday – cajoled into it then she remembers by his drinking buddies – but Nat rebuffed him politely as she had eyes for another man at the time. Eyes! Well a teenage crush anyway, but back to the present, the nettle with which she must grasp.

The sun was beginning to rise over the remains of the tall buildings and that would mean the hustle and bustle of the ruined city, the repaired roads like arteries pumping blood would soon fill with people going about their business. Now more than ever she needed to be somewhere else. The sky this early was an explosion of red and orange hues peppered here and there with dark black foreboding clouds.

Sheng her personal assistant and driver said in a quietly mild tone, 'Ma'am, we should be getting along now.'

'Damn you Knight Captain Danse and damn all you Brotherhood of Steel too,' was all Natalie could utter. A gust of moist warm air carried down the street between the houses and the stadium, it was a "nuclear sunrise" the air was heating up quickly and the lighting and radiation clouds would follow soon enough.

The car in which Natalie travelled back the two and three quarter miles to the Fenway was an old pre-war, 1954 Hudson Hornet in lime green with chrome trim. The Vault-Dweller had found a whole vault, an unnumbered private vault, just full of old cars, and he had given this particular one to her on her sixteenth birthday. Natalie had no idea what to do with it, but he had thought of everything as he included a driver, Sheng, alone with the car, the only other thing he needed to do was get the roads knocked back into shape, as she took delivery of the car, there wasn't a single square foot that wasn't riddled with pot-holes.

Natalie was grateful to climb inside the vehicle as Sheng stood with the rear door open for her, its light warm interior seemed as though it was able to seal her off from the rest of the world. This was truly luxurious, made even more so in the last three years since the vault dwellers road rebuilding scheme had been first rolled out.

Twenty uneventful minutes later and they had arrived at the Fenway stadium and that meant home as well as the office for Natalie. There would be no time for sleep though, Nat needed to grab a change of clothes and a quick bit to eat, which should allow for Sheng to make sure they were not followed. Then they two would head back out to the Fort, where he would be, and both lay in the shadow of that gigantic Airship that was tethered at the Airport across the channel from the fort. Nat kept telling herself over and over, this was the only way, he would not believe it if it came from anyone else.

Sheng called his mistress down to the Hudson once he had checked the close circuit cameras that still worked around the outside of the former baseball stadium and he had filled the car up with gasoline. He was anxious to get going on hearing the distant rumbling and catching the odd glimpse of lightening. Natalie took one last look at herself in her full length mirror, not out of vanity but for reassurance before she alighted down the stairs to the wait vehicle.

The six-cylinder engine growled into life once more and seconds later they began the second leg of their journey along Lansdown Street towards Ipswich Street. Sheng had decided on the route that would take them round the outskirts of Boston along Massachusetts Avenue rather than through the old city, this would add no more than a couple of minutes to the overall journey time providing they weren't stopped this early by any minutemen patrols or of course brigands, there were always brigands and he should know as he read about them often enough in his Boss's paper. The first obstacle would be as they turned into Massachusetts Avenue from Boylston Street to their right was situated a Minuteman Guardhouse, manned by a squad or section of between eight and twelve men, quite possibly half of them would be out on patrol while the rest were asleep still in their cots.

No such luck she thought as the car turned right and she eyed at least one minuteman walking out of the door of the building and heading straight for them.

The minuteman, resplendent in a blue vault suit with cream polymer combat armour, called out to Sheng, flagging him down to stop the car. It was in fact a female member of the minutemen, a familiar one at that, Sheng drew the Hudson to a halt as Natalie depressed the electric window button.

The female trooper was none other than an old school friend, Luna Tavarez, Luna squealed unprofessionally with delight on recognizing Nat. Natalie explained that they were travelling so early as to arrive at the old fort before the onset of the Rad storm, Luna said that she would telegraph ahead to the new Fort that was under construction in the ruins of the old Boston Fire Department building on the corner of Massachusetts Avenue and Theodore Glynn Way.

Natalie gave her thanks and apologized for not being able to stop and catch up before looking up at the skies. A crackle of thunder rang out as if on cue and Sheng, with a flick of his wrist had the ignition key turning the engine over. They had lost but a minute hopefully if they did see another minuteman or patrol they would be waived on, the loose gravel crackled under the wheels has the Hudson picked up speed.

There wasn't much time for sightseeing along the one and a half miles of Massachusetts Avenue before the left turn into Theodore, but from what Nat did see were the green shoots of growth were everywhere. It looked as though one in every five buildings was being renovated and already the ground floor spaces opened up as shops.

Natalie noticed familiar names like Fallon's Basement now Department store, and Diamond City Surplus, Nat wondered if Myrna still hated synth's or did she not ask so many questions these days as money coming in paid the rent.

The broken buildings were applied for by residents who rented them for a small amount each month, then they in turn would clear them out, make them safe and then hopefully open them up as new shops. The lend lease deal was incredibly beneficial to those proprietors as they were allowed to keep and or sell anything of value that they found in the ruins of whatever shop it was under all the rubble, and all of the shops so far were reporting that the basements were stacked with re-saleable goods.

Natalie smiled to herself when the Hudson passed by Arturo Rodriguez's shop, Commonwealth Weaponry, poor Arturo really drew the short straw with his location. Having hired a couple of dozen big burly fellows to help him excavate down to the sub level basement he was rather shocked to find nothing but racks and shelves and sealed boxes of women's lingerie, he was brilliant about it all if not a little red faced when the newspaper ran a front page story including photos of the whole thing, Arturo still hasn't lived it down as customers never fail to rib still, but as he said, all publicity is good, and we did carry free adverts for his shop for several months afterwards.

Sheng was approaching the huge former Boston Fire Department building now and already people were streaming out of the tall building across the road on Natalie's right, the Grand Western Hotel, it was here that all the workers on the new fort project where staying and even at this early hour the place a buzz with activity. It looked to Nat like they were trying to secure all the tarpaulins' that covered the place ahead of the storm so that work could carry, she observed the swirling breath of the workers as they spoke hurriedly to each other, that was not a good sign as the sky was still a glow with those bright orange and red hues, this storm was going to be a big one.

Natalie summoned Sheng to stop, she saw a figure running towards her that looked familiar his wet weather poncho flailing in the wind it was Lieutenant General Preston Garvey. Nat wound down the left side passenger window and caught a sharp blast of cold air in doing so. Preston shouted something but she couldn't hear what he was saying about all the background noise, she signaled just that by raising her right arm, hand outstretched to her ear.

Preston bent forward and suddenly his large round face was framed by the car doors' window. 'Hey Nat' he began, 'Luna sent word ahead, look I don't want to be a sticky bee but we have trouble brewing do you really need to out today at all.' It wasn't a request as much as an order.

Natalie was well aware of the impending doom but she did not know whether Preston had got wind of what the Brotherhood were really up to or what she knew. Nat had never seen Preston looking so put out, 'I'm sorry Miss Wright, if I startled you?'

Preston hadn't meant to cause Natalie any grief, but he was himself under a great deal of stress, what with three quarters of a building up and running, with a nasty weather front moving in and so many other things he had to contend with.

Preston told Natalie that if she were going to the old fort then out of concern, she ought to know that her route would take her to old colony avenue that ran the length of Moakley Park. 'Turn left. I know the road is still under construction but whatever you do don't go right, that section is still under reconstruction.' Was all he was going to say until he saw the look on her face.

He continued in a hushed tone, moving his face very close to hers, Nat could smell the coffee on his breath, 'Cait and RJ, meaning Robert Joseph MacCready, were hold-up on some hush, hush undercover thing at the old UMass building.'

Nat almost sighed with relief, none of the conversation she had, had with Danse had gone any further, she thanked Preston but said they should get on their way if they were to beat the storm. Preston offered his best wishes to Sheng, Sheng nodded and thanked him in return. Nat thought for the first time how her incredibly loyal assistant was, ever since that day, some six years ago, when he'd asked her to be his girlfriend and she had thumped him on the nose, they both got detention but had used the time to really get to know each other, they had remained friends ever since.

Natalie watched as Preston's outline slowly disappearing in the rear view mirror, then with a final wave of the hand and he was gone out of sight. Soon enough Southampton Street became Preble Street and then right into Mohawk Street, next up was a gentle left turn into Logan Way which minutes later would emerge half way along Old Colony Avenue, by now the dark clouds were gathering and the splash of oranges and reds were being consumed in the sky, it was then that the first of the rain began to fall.

Nat took some comfort in watching has Sheng first brought the car to a standstill, then gently he turned the steering wheel to his left at the end of the road.

Joe Moakley Park was a wild affair, the tall grass had reached probably record heights and the trees and bushes grew wild with abandonment in any direction they wanted to. While the new Commonwealth authorities were just about coping with the road reconstruction work on all the major routes in and out of the city, parks and recreation were simple non-existent at this time, unless some unpaid volunteer wanted to beautify an area out of their own pocket that was.

The car suddenly came to an abrupt standstill and Sheng was already alighting from his seat as Natalie started to wind down the window to inquire as to why? Sheng's face looked grim as he returned to the car moments later. Just like Preston he lent forward in to the window to deliver the bad news.

The road was impassable despite the best efforts of the municipal workers, since a tree had fallen over in the park and right across the road ahead.

Natalie was nervous especially after what Preston had whispered to her, she even wondered if the fallen tree was anything to do with Cait and MacCready. Sheng didn't seem worried in the leased, he said that there was an old cinder path that cut right through the park, 'Miss Wright, I just need to reverse the car a few yards back that's all, it's a bit overgrown and we might dirty the paintwork some but otherwise we should get through just fine, I'll give the her a good wash once we get to the fort.'

Once he had reversed, Sheng drove the car up over a shallow bump towards two large stone columns where once the iron gates would have hung. The Park was dark and foreboding, it was still very early but it was as though the sun could not penetrate its deep green and brown foliage. 'With your permission Miss, I think I will just put the headlights on, wouldn't want us to hit anything, would we?'

The headlights cut through the gloom ahead until the car had travelled about half way across the park. Sheng then began to see the outline of figures emerging from the darkness, The Hudson's headlights now reflecting back off their metal bodies, every now and again it was as though someone was stood there reflecting the light of the sun back at them with mirrors.

Sheng brought the car to a halt once more, the metal looking figures were probably Brotherhood of Steel Knights. Were they Knights? Natalie asked her driver. Sheng wasn't entirely sure as they wore much older T-51 power armour suits, not the newer T-60 as worn by the Knights from the Prydwen, but that could equally mean that they were from a nearby Raider gang or even the Gunners.

One of the armoured figures stepped out into Sheng's path and held up his hand, indicating he wanted the Car to stop. Sheng brought the Hudson to a very gentle stop, that's when the same figure gestured, by waving the tip of his laser rifle up and down, that he wished for the occupants to get out of the car, and be quick about it!

Sheng advised Natalie to stay exactly where she was, he would get out and see what they wanted, if they were Brotherhood the worse of it might be they asked for money.

A conversation ensued between Sheng and the Knight while the other four Knights just stood by idly and watched, every now and again they peered at her and smiled, but it wasn't a friendly smile, it was one that concealed its true meaning. Right out of the blue, the Knight hit Sheng with the butt of his rifle. Natalie could only hold her hand to her mouth and gasp!

Sheng was winded badly and collapse on the ground. Nat pushed the rear door of the Hudson open, they were clearly Brotherhood she could see that from their chest markings, but they weren't Maxson's men, so who were they? And what did they want?

Was this Operation Possum? Is this how it was all to begin?

Danse had told her it was weeks possibly months away. No time to think as her heeled shoe's conspired to stumble her on the cinder track, thankfully she was able to recover, then she looked at the other four Knight's and the one who had struck her friend. Sheng was on his knees coughing and spluttering and try to catch his breath.

Natalie felt rage boil up inside of her, who were these men of violence that they could carry out such injustices? Rage spilled out of her mouth as she balled at the officer before her, 'what the hell do you think you are doing? I know you are with the Brotherhood I see your markings!'

The four who stood back did not move an inch, but their helmet Comms were alight with chatter, 'Who is she? How does she know? Should they not just leave now and let them be? Only the officer moved, his power armour hissed compressed air as he swirled round to face them, 'Silence!' he screamed into his Comm link.

The officer returned to gaze upon the female, emboldened by her spirit he took a step towards her his armoured suit clunking and crackling on the wet cinder surface with a dull thud.

'Hold up their Missy this is Brotherhood business, so we do have justification to stop your vehicle if we so desire.' The metallic sound of his voice instantly riled Natalie and she became incensed – 'That is my driver! We have done you no harm, nor are we were we shouldn't be yet you hit him?' The sun climbed in the distance behind the officer silhouetting him and shielding his details from her eyes.

'Hit him missy?' replied the metallic voice, 'no missy, did you not witness it yourself? He slipped and I was about to help him up when you came at me all claw and fangs.'

Nat's mind was reeling she was both scared and angry, she felt vulnerable and all but alone yet she dare not back down. The officer stood awhile staring at her, his thoughts hidden inside an anonymous suit, what is thoughts or intentions were she had not a clue, fear began to eat away at the corners of her mind.

There came hissing sound but the sunlight hurt Natalie's eyes when she tried to see – it was the power armour suit opening, its arms peeled upwards and outwards as did its back, then a great whooshing sound and the noise that gears and cogs that inter twinning might make. Then he was stood right there to one side of the armoured suit, a man, no longer seven feet tall but shorted by a foot or more.

Knight Staff Sergeant Amir Nielsen. Natalie read the name off his chest badge, followed by the Staff Sergeant from the coloured strips on his right arm.

'Hmm,' Nielsen said has he drew closer to Natalie, 'you are a real peach, you know that right? He turned to his men leering as he did, ain't she a real dozy boys?'

Natalie's eyes began to fill with tears now that her rage was spent, her eyes rested on Sheng who knelt down on the ground still clutching his stomach. Sheng looked wide eyed back at her before shaking his head ever so slightly from side to side, he had no wish for Natalie to antagonize these men for he would be unable to protect her should they become enraged further.

Natalie took a deep breath before speaking, so as to choose her words well, 'I apologize if there is a misunderstanding on our part, I see clearly now that you are a Staff Sergeant out on patrol with his men, you happen across a vehicle out here in the middle of nowhere and are rightly suspicious, am I correct, sir?'

The Sergeant walked slowly around her sucking in his bottom lip, his eyes drinking in her beauty, his face so close to hers that she could almost taste the sweat on his brow. She wanted to be sick, his odor was of a man who had been living rough all his life, sour like weak vinegar, yet pungent like a tap room in a public bar. Her head was beginning to swim but knew she needed to be calm.

'So tell me do sweet thing, what's a lovely girlie like you doing out at this time of day? There is a terrible storm on its way are you not scared, Missy?' His breathe was every bit as vile as the rest of him. Natalie knew she must play for time, make that they can be friends that this was all a big misunderstanding, whatever, just keep him talking she thought to herself.

Natalie gulped in mouths full of air as she tried to speak, 'I am with the local newspaper and my friend and I were just out for a drive, trying out all the reconstructed roads, these fine works are what the people want to hear about, it gives them hope Sergeant.'

'Hope Missy? No you don't. You and your kind give the people false hope and just when everybody has got their fill of false hope along comes a dirty synth and takes it all away!'

'I do not see where this conversation is going, sir' Natalie did indeed know, it was going downhill fast and she now tried everything she could to rescue it from becoming something far worse.

'You're friends a synth!' Barked the Sergeant, spital from his mouth splattered against Natalie's cheeks like sting wing barbs. She recoiled. 'You like synth do you missy?' he continued gesturing with his tongue inappropriately. Nat didn't answer with words for her mouth now ran dry, only tears would indicate what she thought or felt.

Then the sergeant flew at her!

In one swift movement his hands were about her body, the weight of his pushing her backwards, she was terrified and tried to scream. Nielsen had pushed her back so that her body lay in a clef between the raised part of the cars bonnet and the raised headlight housing. His movement did not end there, next his right leg jammed between hers, her skirt pulled tight against her hips, the only thing that now checked his advance. Natalie was petrified with fear and shock, her back was arched uncomfortable, his left arm pinned her down while his right hand searched for the hem of her dress.

The intensity of the moment was shattered when a heavily accented Irish voice called out from the tall grass, about two feet from the sergeants left. His men were too enthralled with the salacious nature of this moment that they paid no heed to the voice. Natalie slumped under the weight of the Sergeant, now his body was next to hers, his head only inches away from hers.

Natalie heard the voice, it thrust a hand out to her like a sword of salvation, 'Cait you dear sweet thing,' Natalie thought to herself.

'Now what in the world is going on here Staff Sergeant?'

Nielsen lay across the female sighing heavily, his eyes closed for a moment then opened as he began to shake his head in disbelief.

'Are you going a little deaf wee man? Forgive me if I speak louder, but I thought too much… well you know, made you blind.'

'Damn it all,' whispered the Sergeant, 'there is nothing worse than a man who is interrupted when he is just getting to know a girl.' He spoke those words so that only Natalie could hear, they were said with such force and menace that her resolve was almost broken.

Cait turned towards the four other Knights who still stood not quite knowing what to do. 'Stay put boys if you know what's good for you!' her voice was every bit as menacing as was Nielsen's but they could see her face, her eyes were wild with a blackness that only an harbinger of death might have.

Nielsen snapped! He pushed at the lady and then forced himself upright on turned to face his new nemesis. 'Well look what the cat dragged in lads, maybe we will all have a share in this little morsel, what do you say?'

Cait lowered her laser rifle so that it now pointed straight at the sergeant's groin. 'Now have I got everyone's full attention?' she continued. 'I don't think this lady really likes you, how's-about you try those moves on me, I'm a little less cultured let's just say.'

The Sergeant looked at the newcomer and then her rifle, but thought better than to reply. This new comer had a fierceness about her he didn't care for.

Cait it has been said did like the sound of her own voice, especially when it concerned kicking a man arse, something she had been doing at the Combat zone in Boston for more years than she cared to think about. She continued her dialogue, 'Oh look now where's me manners?' Cait lowered the rifle watching intently the Sergeant, reading his every thought and movement in order that she gain the measure of him.

'Who the hell are you? You know you are interfering with Brotherhood business don't you? For whatever reason the Sergeant's voice lacked the conviction it did when he spoke to Natalie.

'Sure, sure, darlin', whatever you say,' Cait drooled mockingly in response.

Natalie was thankful that she was now able to straighten up but he still stood far to close for her to be anything but scared.

'I'm going to enjoy taking you down a peg or two, then – he turned back to Natalie- I'll carry on our little chat.' Natalie could see also that his nerve was ebbing away with every passing minute.

Cait placed her Rifle on the floor and began to take off her black leather Jacket revealing her curvaceous figure in a skin tight all-in-one blue vault 88 suit. As the sergeant stepped toward her she casually loosened her long red hair so that it flowed like wine down her back, then she tossed it left to right with the deftest of head flicks.

If one had x-ray vision, one might have viewed the other four Brotherhood Knights inside their armour just standing agape, having no idea that MacCready had rose from the tall grass with his Laser musket pointing straight at them.

The Sergeant noticed him but could not alert his men as he was separated from his Helmet Comms, so instead he made the first move in this dance of warriors. Nielsen faked his attack so that she might think he was going to Cait's left, clenching his right fist to strike in the belief she would shy away from him.

Cait however, stood her ground and within the blink of an eye she struck him with a move that had made her famous as a cage fighter – a karate chop to his larynx - he was down on the ground hard clutching his windpipe and gasping for air.

'Damn that was good!' Said MacCready speaking from behind the four troopers. Now he had there attention and so they turned slowly, he had his laser musket trained on them, gently swaying it one from another.

'Hi Fella's I'm with her in case you are wondering?' he stated with a smug grin on his face. One of the soldiers spoke in dulcet metallic tones, 'we are with the Brotherhood you could get hung just for pointing weapons at us, never mind assaulting an officer. We just stopped this synth sympathizer – the Sarge was out of order but this can all be sorted out.'

'He's no officer just a trumped up Sergeant!' snarled MacCready.

Cait looked at Natalie with a warm smile and a wink, Nat glared back at her as if to say, please let's just get on our way. However, Cait was enjoying herself now, so she continued, 'I'm Katy O'Malley and this here is my side kick Dreary Dan O'Connell we're with the Gunners have you herd of us by any chance? She lied.

None of the soldiers had although they did confess to hearing of the Gunners. Cait was delighted with this little charade of hers, so she continued, milking her thick Irish brogue for all it was worth, 'gentlemen if you care to step out of your armour then I promise I won't shoot you, now what do you say?'

There metallic heads turned too looked at each other and then at Cait and then at Dreary Dan, but they didn't move. 'Did you ever hear the story of Dreary Dan boys? Yeah I didn't think so, you see he craves excitement, on account of a knock on the head he took as a wee baby suckling on his mama if you know what I mean.'

They didn't obviously know and mores to the point neither did Nat or Sheng or even Dreary Dan. 'No? The thing is, and I blame myself here entirely, he hates long drawn out explanations, on account of the bump – Cait signaled to his head - and he gets bored and . . . well accidents happen.' Cait glared at MacCready and gave the slightest nod of her head.

MacCready levelled his musket at one of the Knights randomly and discharge his weapon. Knight Bigley dropped like a sack of falling potatoes spilling the contents of his stomach into the visor plate of his helmet.

'Oh my God! Exclaimed Cait you just shot the man in the leg!'

Bigley's power armour suit peeled back and out he clambered, leaving it laying on the ground, his face was covered in vomit.

'See that wasn't so hard was it? Oh gaud someone get him a bucket, no on second thoughts, you get over here and help the good Sergeant, the rest of you, OUT!'

The Laser Musket had put a whole the size of a golf ball straight through the leg of the armour and of Bigley.

'Oh you big soppy baby the laser has quarterised the wound and at least you have another leg! Now you three I'm getting impatient.' Simultaneously they all alighted their power armour suits.

'Would you look at that?' Exclaimed Cait, 'now I do like a man in uniform, but as you have kept me waiting so you have now, that I am soaked through to the skin, you can all take off your clothes and then start running back the way you came,' with that she brought her laser up towards the head of one of the soldiers.

They stripped to their under clothes and after picking up their wounded comrade they scrambled away through the undergrowth as best they could.

Natalie ran to Cait and just threw her arms tightly around her, 'thank you, thank you, thank you, God how did Piper survive in this world doing this every day.'

'Ah now away with you girl, it's all just for show honest I'm no different to you Natalie Wright, and neither was your sister, god rest her soul.' Natalie balled her fist and gave Cait a light rabbit punch on the shoulder. 'I'm so very grateful to you Cait, but we need to go. Sheng and I have business at the fort.'

'What with his lordship?' Cait enquired.

'Yes, with him, why is there problem?'

'Good luck sister! He was heavy on the bottle last night you know, fifth anniversary and all.' Cait's face was a picture of genuine concern.

Nat closed her eyes for a moment, yesterday was indeed the fifth anniversary of Piper's death and she was so wrapped up with Danse all night that she had forgotten.

Cait and Natalie just hugged, Sheng and MacCready shook hands but Cait saw a look pass between the two men.

The rest of the journey to the old fort was as uneventful as it could have been for Nat and Sheng, for Cait and MacCready it was back to hiding in the tall grass watching what those Brotherhood of Steel goons were up to.

The five T-51 Power Armour suits were left were they stood or had fallen, with an EMP disc attached to each one, the size of a small coin. The charge would fry all of their electrical circuits rendering them useless unless they were to have a very costly refit.

Sheng drove the carriage up Head Island causeway as far as the old gift shop which now acted as a gatehouse where all travelers had to check in before being allowed any further, Sheng was asked to park the carriage around back in the area provided, there was one other vehicle, an M38 Willys jeep, parked near what looked like a rear door to the gift shop.

Natalie approached the clerk at his deck telling him that she had very urgent business with the General, the clerk stated stoically that it was early and the General wasn't to be disturbed. Natalie wasn't sure what to do next as she had already met Preston, Cait and MacCready on the way here.

The clerk was peering over his glasses at Natalie, 'will there be anything else Miss Wright,' he enquired. Natalie said she ought to be flattered that he knew who she was but that wasn't going to get her inside the fort. The clerk seemed to look ideally at her as though he was completely disinterested in anything she had to say. Looking at his wrist watch he noted in a nonchalant voice, that it was right about now that Major General Ronnie Shaw took her early morning constitutional around the outside of the fort. Alas however, there was nothing more he could do to help her, and bade her fair well.

Natalie didn't need telling twice and she was hot footing it outside and up the gentle slope before anyone else could spot her and detain her. The Major General emerged right on cue from the forts main gates and she looked straight at Nat hailing her straight away. 'Preston said you might show up, how are you, Miss Wright?'

Natalie smiled she knew she had scored a touchdown. 'I've come to see the General on a very urgent mission but it isn't something I feel comfortable discussing out here, can you help me get inside?' She hooked her thumb in the air pointing towards the fort.

'Anything for you Miss Wright, you know he really misses you especially since well you know when.' Nat turned to Sheng telling him to wait back at the gatehouse. Ronnie accompanied Nat through the main gates and over towards the old Armory in the North West corner of the fort. 'How is he, honestly, I mean?' Nat inquired

'Well to tell you the truth I'm worried, during the day he seems fine you can't really tell unless you look closely, but not many folks round here have a strong enough character to do that with the General. I don't care though. I signed on for the long haul so he's stuck with me, but this is different.'

'How so?'

'Oh, he has his little man cave under the armoury at the back of the basement storage area, but last night he hit the bottle and I mean hit it, took four of us to carry his sorry ass to his bed, and boy did he stink. No one has been in that place in weeks to clean up or anything, not since he and Cait had a set too, he's like a wild dog with a thorn stuck in its paw, bark, bark, bark all day long.'

'Him and Cait were an item?' Nat asked sounding really quite surprised.

'Miss Wright he's a man and God knows they have their needs but after Piper he just seemed to shut down emotionally, don't get me wrong his loss benefitted the Commonwealth immensely, but underneath something was eating him away, then he and her get all friendly like, they tried to hide it, at first at least but then.'

'They had a bust up?' asked Natalie concerned.

'You know he even sent young Shaun away, up to Fort Hagen, some six months ago.'

They arrived at the armoury door it was a massive solid steel affair that lifted up in the air once Ronnie had punched in the correct code.

'Well this is where I get off, he's over to the left straight down the stairs through the only door down there and out through the door at the back of the main chamber, Good luck kid you're gunna need it.'

Natalie followed the instructions to the letter and soon enough she found her hand on the door handle that led to the man she blamed for the death of sister, the man she once had a silly teenage crush upon, the man she never ever wanted to set eyes on again, the man she hated with a passion these last five years, the man she sore just what her sister had also seen in him, the love.

Good grief the room was pitch black and stunk like a mortuary Nat nearly gagged just opening the door. After a few moments of fumbling around on the right hand wall her hand found a light switch and she depressed it. The full horror of the last five years hit her as her eyes adjusted to the glare of the strip lights, empty food cartons, probably twice if not three times the amount of empty beer and whiskey bottles, dirty clothes strewn either and thither.

Nat felt her self-pitying him as emotions poured back into her mind that had been shut away she didn't know whether to laugh or cry Nat realised that he really must have loved Piper just as she did – God this was going to be really difficult she thought to herself, at the same time realizing she was having this conversation in her head she still hadn't set eyes on him. There was another door off the back of the room she stood in, he must be through there she thought. Natalie opened the door gently so as not to disturb him.

There he was splayed out on the bed like he'd just fallen backwards, wearing only his boxer shorts. Nat approached him slowly when she got no reaction she prodded his left shoulder gently, saying 'hey you time to get up.'

He half opened one eye then grunted something like' Hey you' back but shut his eye and seemed to drop right back off to sleep, muttering as he did.

Nat had regained some of her courage and bent towards him once more, 'hey you c'mon time to get up.' This time as she reach out her right arm to prod him he rolled over in the bed slightly to one side causing her almost to topple on top of him, then his right arm shot out and grabbed Natalie, she let out a yelp both in surprise and with the firmness of his grip, then he pulled her right on top of him.

Natalie's mind was reeling, what should she do? Next, both his arms were tightly around her back pulling her ever closer towards his pursing lips. God he stank she thought, then she said it loudly! Suddenly one eye opened and he asked her who she was.

Nat pulled herself free and managed to straddle his midriff before speaking. 'Who the hell should I be you stupid arse – now get up before you lose everything.'

Both eyes opened now but he strained to see who this was, it sounded just like her, his Piper, but he knew it couldn't be, it looked through squinted eyes just like her too, God if this was a dream he just wanted it to go on forever. She was here?

'Why did you leave me?' He felt everything that was good in the world start to just flow back into him, that deep down aching in the depth of his soul, he wanted her, he could feel her warm body. Then has he pulled her back towards his body she hit him.

 _SLAP!_

Right across his face with all her might. Natalie wondered if he even felt it, though she knew she did, darn, her hand hurt.

'Nathan Dewitt I hate you!' she shouted at the top of her voice.

Nathan began to snore.

Natalie began to beat down on his chest with her fists, Nathan never flinched not once, just carried right on snoring.

Though he didn't know it he took a beating off Natalie, his chest had bright red welts on it but he didn't utter a single word. Then as Natalie ran out of angry and energy he opened his eyes and looked straight at her.

'I'm sorry!' – so lame and pathetic it made her scream but she had neither the energy nor the fight anymore and she just slumped down, her burning hot body, skirt hitched up around her tights, against his bare chest and with only a thin cotton sheet covering his lower half. Natalie lay against him, her ear close to his heart and she began to sob inconsolably.

Tears ran in rivulets down Nathan's face too now, for he began to realise that this was so much bigger than him, his feelings, wants, desires and needs, thousands of people now depended on him and everything he and they had fought for over the last six years.

It was now on the line. Piper gave Nathan more than just hope she gave him something that he had lost the day he stepped in to Vault 111. He loved his wife and child with all his heart, heck he had even put in a transfer from the Navy Seals to logistics just so that he could spend more time with them, the transfer never came through instead the whole world just went mad and then he lost everything, everything he had fought his whole life for.

Waking from cryo-sleep only to see his wife brutally murdered and his infant son kidnapped and not being able to do a thing about it, then find his son, now in his eighty seventh year and dying of cancer, but it didn't end there oh no fate or the Gods had much more crap to sling his way, beginning with a new son, a synth, whatever the hell that was supposed to mean.

Would he grow up even into an adult synth? Or would he stay as a twelve year old boy for the rest of his life? none of that mattered to Piper though, she just took it all in her stride, no questions just solutions, loving, kind, honest solutions like taking on the role of being Shaun's new mother – motherhood thrust upon her just like that and he wasn't even a real child!

Then that fateful day at the institute when Nathan had aligned himself via the Railroad with a group of dissident Synth's who themselves were plotting their own escape, he used them to smuggle explosives into the institute and plant them all around the ceiling support walls.

The Brotherhood wanted to blow the nuclear reactor but Nathan knew better, he knew they just needed to bring the roof down and that is when it all started to go wrong. He was with Piper setting the timers and a last batch of explosives when a request came from his real son Shaun to speak with him one last time, the real Shaun was by this time on a ventilator – how could Nathan refuse?

Piper said for him to go, she had everything covered but the Synth's who were helping must have realised that their actions this day would bring a total end to production or even future access to any form of maintenance for them, and that was not what they wanted at all something went wrong Nathan wasn't there, Synth Shaun lived and Piper didn't that day.

Finding Cait, who was a complete car crash at the Combat Zone, was the only thing that kept him focused after that, but it wasn't love that drove him on it was instinct, instinct to help someone less fortunate than himself. That wouldn't mean for him a new shot at life that just meant that he could function on autopilot until he got Cait cleaned up.

Now this! Here and now, Natalie, Piper's sister, who had it appears had fallen asleep across his torso, but for how long? What time was it? Somehow Nathan Dewitt dragged himself away from the bed and climbed into the shower cubical, hot water to soak away the worries of it all. When he thought back, God was she beautiful? Just like Piper, so soft to the touch, her skin, the thought of her being only a room away.

She was so worth fighting for too, because that was he did that is what he had to do, the hot water from the shower worked its way in, sleuthing the filth that covered his body away, opening up his pours attacking the years of excrement that had fixed itself there, not one person other than those two beautiful sisters were worth a damn, not even Cait!

Everyone he had ever met inside or out of Vault 111 in this mad twisted version of hell was out to grab what they could for themselves. Settlement after settlement he had liberated from the filth, his blood bled, his sweat and tears and still they demanded more.

The greatest of them all, the Institute. They were responsible for starting the war! And why, so that they could terraform it, reshape it into their vision, and so billions lost their lives.

They wanted to wipe the tired rotten human race from the face of the earth and replace them with plastic facsimiles that could be controlled, that could be reprogrammed. Why?

Natalie was still asleep when Nathan had showered, dresses and was making breakfast. In between cooking the ham and eggs, with coffee. Nathan had been running through his messages, and there were a lot, he came across the report from Sheng, Sheng unknown to anyone but him, Cait, MacCready and Ronnie was an undercover agent, and he was quite frankly brilliant.

Natalie never suspected a thing, he was there to collect Intel everywhere she went but more importantly his job was to make sure no harm ever came her way.

Nathan now know something about 'Operation Possum', he had also read the brief report from Cait about the five T-51 suited Knights that had stopped Nat on her way here.

The smell of the ham and eggs must have woken Natalie the sleep was obviously what her body needed as she stretched without opening hers eyes, 'Hey sleepy head,' called Nathan gently, 'your breakfast is served.' Natalie rose from the bed looked at the food which did she had to admit look really good, looked back at Nathan and raised a smile while whispering the words thank you.

Nathan replied that she was welcome before asking if she wanted to eat first or talk as he now knew why she had come but he would not have known every detail like Nat would have. Natalie wanted to do both, so she told Nathan all that she was able and then asked him what he was going to do next. Nathan said that there wasn't a lot that he could do but he did have an idea if Nat was up for it.

Nathan wanted the newspaper to run a series of articles about how should the thirty two settlements of the Commonwealth be governed, were they happy with the way things were or did they want more, that type of thing. She was to make sure that it couldn't be linked back to any leek from the Prydwen. Natalie liked the idea.

Nathan and Natalie had been talking for over an hour when a knock sounded on the Living room door, it was Ronnie. 'General?' she inquired, 'General I think we have a situation that needs your input.' Nathan looked at Nat, 'You know there is no place I would rather be than here with you right now but duty calls,' he raised his eyebrows as he spoke so as to say that this would probably be something or nothing.

Nat looked across to Ronnie and asked jokingly 'does he flirt with all the ladies like this,' Ronnie joined in the jest eagerly just happy to Nathan back to his old self again, 'Breakfast in bed, the General, yep, so long as you have a pulse and be female,' Natalie threw a pillow at Nathan while rebuking him, 'so if I was a ghoul it wouldn't matter?'

Ronnie said, 'nope.'

Nathan started to play push Ronnie out of the doorway saying that she would be on latrine duty for the next week if she kept this up.

Once outside in the corridor Nathan asked how bad it was and Ronnie said she didn't know but there were five verti-birds heading there way from the Prydwen.

Nathan asked if there was any radio traffic to indicate why the sudden show of force, Ronnie pointed upwards. 'Not with that storm pitching up overhead,' it took a lot to rattle the old Major General but there were signs, she wasn't entirely comfortable with what was happening.

Then she asked in matter-of-fact way if she should turn out the Guard.

Nathan would have liked to keep things as low key as possible at first so he immediately replied in the negative. However, a moment later his hard thoughtful looking face broke into a broad smile. 'Didn't I see a report somewhere that those five Cavalry boys had passed their HGV license's over in the motor pool?'

'Yes you did General!'

Just a couple of minutes to the west of the old fort in the shape of a rectangle was the Minutemen Cavalry base, its boundaries were along East First Street and East Broadway, from Farragut Road to Summer Street. The Cavalry boasted a full complement of one hundred and twenty men and women of all ranks.

Four of the last five years had been spent recovering every type of transportation that either littered the Commonwealth or that had been squirreled away in some hidden bunker or vault. Underneath the Satellite array up at Fort Hagen which was formerly an Airforce reserve storage facility, Nathan discovered an underground carpark which held, M46 Medium tanks, M37 Cargo trucks, M113 armoured personnel carriers, Willys jeeps, Howitzers, field artillery and more hand held weaponry than there were people left in the commonwealth.

Until Nathan had arrived, almost three hundred years out of time, nobody in the Commonwealth could drive let alone operate any of the thousands of military or civilian vehicles that sat idly every few meters down every street.

The first and by far easiest group to teach were the motorcycle cavalry, nicknamed; the Iron horses and were formed into an eighty strong regiment, Nathan had taken Shaun over to fort Hagan and within days he had the place up and running, the synthetic boy was in his element. Within a month he was already teaching Minutemen everything they would need to know in order to take these vehicles back out on to the roads again.

Shaun was a mini super computer and he had access to two hundred and ninety years of military hardware and Intel, he used it to teach while he in turn studied his human students.

Soon Shaun was enlisting the help of Tinker Tom from the now defunct Railroad and between them there was nothing that couldn't be taught. They reclassified every item from a button to a heavy tank, were it was only an 'M' it was now a 'CM', which stood for Commonwealth Model. After the motorcycle cavalry, they trained a mechanized infantry company that comprised of six CM8 Greyhounds, each with a compliment of four crew.

CM8 Greyhounds were six wheeled armoured cars that had a 37mm gun, they had an operational range of 350 miles on one full tank of gasoline, and out of the Eight and a half thousand that were manufactured over five hundred could be found in the Commonwealth.

Ronnie nudged the General back to the here and now as he had stopped talking a couple of minutes ago and was now just staring at the ground.

'I think it is time we brought the Greyhounds out and put them on show, I know it will put those flyboys from the Brotherhood into a tail spin.' Nathan had suddenly found his old pep again and Ronnie basked in his new found radiance.

'Send word to have five of them drive up and park just behind where those Verti-Birds land, instruct the gunners inside to pick out a separate Verti-Bird each and to train their guns on them.

'Do they even know how to fire those guns yet General?' Ronnie asked enthusiastically.

'I'm not so sure they do but if you don't tell those Brotherhood Knights, I promise I won't either.' Nathan had a real twinkle in his eye now and Ronnie knew that whatever happens Nathan Dewitt had a handle on it.

The five Verti-birds made the short journey across the bay from the undercarriage of the Prydwen to a vacant parking lot two minutes north of Castle Island where Fort Independence was situated, no sooner had they landed than five squads, of five power armour suited knights, debussed and began lining up ready to march toward the rear gate of the fort.

The rear facing wall of the fort had been heavily damaged both in the last war and more recently in the re-taking of the fort by the Minutemen. A little over four years ago the rear wall was reconstructed using concrete cladding over wooden frames but that proved to be inadequate against all the other construction jobs being carried, so two years ago the whole lot was stripped back to the original breach in the wall and replaced with stone filled steel mesh cages that were stacked one on top of another leaving a small opening for a rear entrance the outer sides and top of the crates were then rendered with rockcrete a more hardwearing version of cement unto they could be levelled off.

The twenty five Knights had now lined up two squads deep, fifteen at the back and ten at the front, in their midst stood alone figure whose identity it was impossible to tell since they all looked exactly the same, all except that one, who Nathan noticed bore the rank insignia of a Lieutenant.

Inquisitively he looked at Ronnie his arms folded and his right hand cupping his chin. 'No Captain Danse, so I would imagine that would be Rhys, but leading a whole company.' hmm, this was intriguing, Nate thought, if not for the fact that his best friend in the Brotherhood was absent for no apparent reason. Nathan decided to walk down to the Knights alone, they hadn't noticed the Greyhounds yet so he still had an element of surprise and strength, should this visitation, turn ugly.

As Nathan walked casually down to the Knights he noticed that some of those who made up the rear ranks were indeed turning their heads even if fleetingly, to look at what was behind them. Even T-51 power armour had a heads-up display built in that could alert the soldier in the suit to heat signatures beyond his normal field of vision.

The CM8 Greyhound with its six cylinder Hercules gasoline engine pumping out one hundred and ten horse power would have lit up any display, causing quite a stir!

The nature of Nathan's casual les-affair saunter down the gentle grassy slope towards the figure, whom he was now convinced was Rhys, was to allow Ronnie to gather as much Intel as she could, she in turn kept Nathan up to speed on everything she could see and hear via the Comm-tap the Minutemen had on the Brotherhood headset Comms.

'General, they have eleven troops wearing T-60 type B suits including the one you identified as Rhys, those would all have come from the Prydwen, ten more were in older T-51's and the other five seemed to be a mix of even older T-45's and bits of T-51's. Every one of those were a mix of types A through to F.'

All of those men in older armour, Nate deduced, must have been new arrivals from the second airship. He was getting Intel on that ship from Cait and MacCready. It had been winched down and hidden from view behind the old UMass building, south of the old Fort. Maxson was a stickler for uniformity and would never of allowed for a parade as ad hock as this, which meant he was not calling the shots on this little rekey.

Nathan felt a pang of distress that Knight Captain Danse, one of his closes friends wasn't leading this deployment, and he knew virtually every other rating onboard the Prydwen so it had to be newly promoted Knight Lieutenant Rhys.

Rhys never liked Nathan, as he recalled their first meeting at the Cambridge Police department building some five maybe six years ago. Rhys was injured and unable to continue a mission that he and Danse were undertaking, so Nate offered his services. Rhys bought into this Brotherhood code, so unless you were a test tube certified member he was never going to trust you, period.

It grated on Rhys, even after Nate had completed every task he was set by the man, that the other members of the Recon team, Haylen in particular, had hit it off with Nate. Maybe it was harder for Rhys because he evidently had something going with Haylen, anyway there was certainly history between them, and so jealousy could also have played its part.

Bringing himself to a standing position just a couple of feet in front of the Knight/Rhys who stood between the front two squads of men, Nathan eyed each squad of men up nonchalantly in turn. Then he addressed the Knight's looking at none of them in particular. 'Who is the commanding officer?' he demanded curtly.

Nate was also a Knight Paladin in the Brotherhood of Steel, appointed by Maxson himself so therefore he out ranked everyone in the Eastern Chapter of the Brotherhood except Elder Maxson. He scanned the blank helmeted figures for any sign of movement, even Ronnie detected none via the wiretap. Indubitably the Knight who stood right opposite him stepped one foot forward and gave a metallic reply, 'I am!'

'Take off your helmet when you speak to me!' Barked Nathan, again using his rank and privilege to talk down to this insubordinate, subordinate officer. The Knight reached up both hands and gripped either side of his helmet. He gave it the gentlest of touches to his left.

The helmet hissed before coming off smoothly and gently in the knight's hands, he then brought it down, begrudgingly, to his midriff. If the look on his face was anything to go by newly promoted Knight Lieutenant Rhys was not a happy bunny, his first mission, a milk run and already the vault dweller was making a fool of him.

Nathan continued as he stepped intimidatingly close to Rhys, 'You will address me as Sir! Unless of course you want to spend the rest of your days busted back to being a squire!'

'Yes….Sir!' Bawled the crestfallen soldier in front of his men, the sheer look of horror mixed with hatred etched on his face, Nate almost felt pity for the man.

'So to what do we owe the honour of such a fine display of armour Lieutenant?'

'Sir I have been tasked by Elder Maxson to politely request your presence aboard the Prydwen.' Rhys spoke now totally devoid of any emotion, his victory would surely come in the week and months that followed, it empowered the spiteful Lieutenant that he knew something Nathan didn't.

'Why?' short and to the point, Nate didn't want either this situation escalating or even this miserable fellow here any longer than he need be.

'Don't know Sir!' retorted Rhys.

'Really, a Knight Lieutenant and they don't yet trust you with an explanation for your orders?'

By the time Nathan had said his last word he had walked fully around Rhys as though this was a parade ground inspection, but that is exactly what he wanted it to look like to the watching Minutemen. He needed them to know whatever this was they had nothing to fear from the Brotherhood.

'Sir! Permission to speak off the record?'

'Good ahead Rhys we are all on the same side here aren't we?'

'Sir, Knight Captain Danse is confined to barracks onboard the Prydwen pending an official investigation in to his recent conduct, and Elder Maxson would very much like you to attend the inquiry, it his belief you may hold the key to fully understanding what was really happening.'

'Has Danse been charged with anything or didn't they tell you that either?'

'Sedition Sir! Rhys spoke eyes straight ahead as though Nathan was no longer present, but Nathan caught the flicker of emotion. Rhys may have been a lot of things but he was fiercely loyal to his friends, and Danse was just that, his friend.

'Sedition?!' Now that piqued Nathan's curiosity as well as a feeling of foreboding in the pit of his stomach.

'Yes Sir, against the Brotherhood,' now Rhys's voice lacked any conviction, the charge may have been issued but Rhys didn't believe it was true, that was a good thing at least, because Nathan thought that it was laughable in the least.

'Am I under suspicion too or generally being called as a character witness?' Nate was suddenly rattled and Rhys was slowly becoming aware of that fact too.

Rhys looked directly into Nathan's eyes when he spoke, 'I sincerely hope that you will come and that you will clear Danse's good name.

'Alright Rhys I just need a moment to tell the base commander where I'm going, oh and I had better tell those troops behind you to take their fingers off their triggers, we don't want them popping an hole in the Prydwen do we!'

Rhys immediately turned as did all his men in unison with him as though he had commanded them to do so. Rhys resisted the temptation to ask anything about the armoured vehicles, this was supposed to be a show of superior force, so he would rely instead on any Intel the Brotherhood had already on them, if indeed they had any.

'Sir, Respectfully I have one more request from the Elder before we leave.'

'…and that is?'

'Do you know anything about a Gunner Leader who goes by the name of Katy O'Malley, she and her confederates attacked one of our patrols earlier this morning and stole five of our T-51's.'

Nathan looked every bit as innocent as the day he had been born, 'Why do you ask?'

'Well, the thing is, she spoke with a strong Irish accent and was described by the men, especially the two that were wounded, as having a shock of deep red hair and piercing green eyes, ring any bells, Sir?'

Ignoring any inference that Rhys was making Nate spoke once more in an offhand casual manner. 'Ah', he remarked, 'that would explain what one of the Minutemen patrols observed this morning.'

'So you do know of her, Sir?'

' Not that Rhys, the patrol came across five empty power armour suits out near the old UMass building, I was informed that they appeared to have been abandoned.'

'Err, no sir they were taken, by force!' Rhys interjected.

'Be that as it may, I order the men to leave them as they weren't any cause for concern. Perhaps those five men at the back could fly over there and retrieve them?' Nate pointed to the five soldiers in the mix and match armour in most whimsical way.

'Can't Sir, they have been immobilized and we don't have any mobile heavy lifting gear with us has we were instructed to turn out a full complement of men.'

'Well as it happens today is your lucky day Rhys, I will instruct the drivers of the five Infantry Carriers behind you to recover them for you and bring them to the Airport.'

With that Nate turned about face and walked calmly back to fort.

Extract from the Brotherhood of Steel Databanks; The Prydwen was In terms of design, a 40,000 tons rigid-frame airship, with lighter-than-air gas bags safely hidden inside a lightweight armored plating that surrounds the main deck. Originally powered by an old type fusion plant, it was refitted with an updated plant pulled from Rivet City's aircraft carrier wreckage for the Commonwealth campaign. As such, it has been capable of crossing the vast distance dividing the ruins of Washington, D.C. and Boston in record time thanks to the power of its main engines. The Prydwen can land on the ground in emergencies and to conserve coolant needed to keep it afloat. Notably, the airship itself is unarmed, but it always carries enough troops, verti-birds and supplies to mount a major offensive. Extract ends.

The Prydwen was tethered to a single drum winch that was situated on the roof of the old terminal 'B' building of the former Boston Logan International Airport, the view on a normal day from the fight deck where up to six Verti-birds could dock could only be described as being breathtaking the ship herself could be seen from as far away as Salem in the north, Lexington in the west and south as far away as Quincy. Today however with the storm swirling all around meant visibility was limited to only a few feet this high up. Thankfully the airship was heavy and stable enough to sit the worst of the weather out with only the occasional bump here and there sort of like being on a pleasure boat on slightly choppy water. The short hop across the channel from the old fort went without hitch, it would take far more than a spot of ill-tempered weather to shake either these Verti-bird crews or their ships.

Nathan was told to proceed to the Observation deck on the top level of the interior section of the ship, Rhys was the only other Knight to follow him but Nathan noted that there were two guards on every doorway instead of the usual one, each one dressed in full T-60 power armour and carrying a Gatling laser gun.

Once inside Nathan was greeted amicably by his senior commander Elder Maxson and cordially introduced to Proctor Quinlan who he already very well aware of from all those technical documents he'd brought too in the past. Maxson said that Knight Lieutenant Rhys would remain as head of security but it was said in a rhetorical manner as thought it was for the benefit of someone else who wasn't present in person but who may be listening in or having this recorded to play back later.

'Knight Paladin Nathan Dewitt,' Maxson began in a tone not unbegetting a court room, we have called you here today to try to help us understand what to us looks like a serious breach of discipline carried out by Knight Captain Danse on the evening of the 31st of January 2292 with which you may or may not have been a willing participant in.

The Captain was sent back to the Cambridge Police Department to take over the day to day running of his old squad, squad Gladius. There after carrying out his daily duties he retired for the night but not alone for it seems he had a liaison with a civilian member of the press which lasted late into the night and into the early hours of the next day.

After which the said civilian made her way to her home address accompanied by her male servant, but they did not stay at her home address for long, no, they then headed straight to the fort, fort Independence where you Paladin Dewitt reside there to spend the rest of the morning, February 1st, with you and you alone.

During the journey to the fort the said civilian and her driver ran into one of our patrols, a patrol that was reacting to Intel on a nest of ghouls hold up in the UMass building at Harbor point. An exchange took place in which one of our highly trained Sergeants identified the civilian driver as a possible synth, an altercation took place and before it could be sorted out professionally the patrol was attacked by a group of assailants.

This resulted in the loss of a line of communication with the possible synth, the loss of several valuable pieces of Brotherhood equipment not to mention a severe injury sustained by the fore mentioned Sergeant.

Nathan began speaking, I am of course fully aware that the civilian you are talking about did indeed spend time with Knight Captain Danse on the night of January 1st as she told me when I asked when as you said we met later that following day.

Now you may not be aware as it hasn't been mentioned that January 1st 2287 was the date on which my civil partner and sister to the civilian female in question, was killed acting out a mission on behalf of myself and the Brotherhood, a mission given to me directly by yourself Elder Maxson.

It is my belief and I am not relationship specialist that the civilian and Captain Danse are in a firmly established relationship of their own and that as you said this was his first posting away from the Prydwen – I think that the course of events so far are perfectly understandably. Afterwards the civilian then came to see me for the first time in those five years perhaps because after the passage of time it just seemed the right thing to do. Now as for the altercation that took place I can only tell you what is already in Lieutenant Rhys's report and that I have instructed the Minutemen to recover the suits and bring them to the Airport base here.

As for Intel on the names of Gunner Commanders and men I am happy to supply what I know and the locations which I would be surprised if you didn't already know as I believe my T-60 Power armour automatically downloads everything I see and say directly into Proctor Quinlan's data banks.

As regards Captain Danse I have no knowledge of his movements or where-a-bouts other than when he is with me, as he is not part of my command structure nor is he under my command.

Elder Maxson thanked Nathan for his report and candor before apologizing for not being made aware of the circumstances of the death of his former partner nor the relevance of the date on which she died.

Proctor Quinlan was called forward to give his account of Knight Captain Danse's movements.


	3. Chapter 3

Shane Kind Fallout Chapter 3

CHAPTER THREE

'What we have been able to do is put together a day-by-day account of the movements and activities of the Knight Captain, since he was promoted to that rank, and more importantly since his rank gave him access to some of the more sensitive material stored here on the Prydwen.'

Proctor Quinlan used footage from the Captains helmet cam and communications set. 'Now, he continued, we can see that he also made several trips to the Airport base camp from the Prydwen via the Verti-birds during his down time when he would not of being wearing Power Armour or been monitored. On these occasions the Captain made contact with carriers for the restored Postal Services that Paladin Dewitt was instrumental in re-instating.'

'Is this relevant Proctor?' asked Maxson passively.

'I bring this up because I think we can all say that whatever settlements or services Nathan Dewitt has been involved in just like one hundred per cent of his missions for the Brotherhood they have been successful, and of great benefit.'

'Do continue…'

'All of the mail has been addressed to this single female civilian, and where we were able, we monitored and found it to have contained nothing other than that of a personal nature.'

'This would be too the Editor-in-Chief of the local newspaper.'

'Yes, Sir. The newspaper and all its content each day were also monitored and no key words or anything that could be construed as sensitive nature to the Brotherhood was contained there in.'

'Very good, it seems like no stone was left unturned.'

'Now we come to the 31st of January 2292.'

'Knight Captain Danse had received his orders onboard the Prydwen to return to the Brotherhood outpost situated at the Cambridge Police Department building, if there was a break in protocols it was here!'

'Ah, let's hope that you have at least something worthy of keeping us up this late, eh?'

'Shortly after Danse had met the three new recruits that would be joining his Squad.'

A holotape was played; Danse could be seen contacting one of the other members of his team, Warrant Officer Haylen who was already on site, here after all other Brotherhood business had been taken care of Danse could be seen and herd asking the Warrant Officer to contact his civilian friend asking her to meet him at the Police Department building for dinner.

'Again it should be stated for the record that at no time did Danse attempt to make any contact with either a college or the civilian without his helmet being present and therefor able to record the events.'

'Good, good, continue if you please.'

'As a precaution Knight Lieutenant Rhys was instructed under orders to take one of the new recruits, Knight Roosevelt Frey, on a reconnaissance mission, as much to give him first-hand experience as anything else. For the record Captain Danse was not at any time under suspicion from my department, these orders came from above.'

Elder Maxson asked at this point do we have the surveillance footage from the time Danse met with the civilian until the time they parted. Rhys was a little red faced as he presented the disc containing the audio, Rhys apologies that there was only audio and no live feed footage.

The audio disc gave up only background noise muffled periodic conversation and some other strange noises that could not easily be identified which caused a ripple of laughter amoungst those present.

Elder Maxson interjected at this point and asked if Rhys had listened to the whole disc and was this as good as it gets. Rhys nodded in the affirmative.

'Let's dispense with this shall we and pick up with the next movements made by the civilian, shall we?'

'Not once during her journey did the civilian carry out any action that could be construed as passing information on to a third party.'

Maxson was getting tired of this charade, 'I do hope there is more, Proctor?'

'Well Sir, Then we arrive at the unfortunate incident at Moakley Park. Knight Staff Sergeant Amir Nielsen states that he stopped the car, a green Hudson Hornet, which the civilian was travelling in.'

'Ah our dear Staff Sergeant Nielsen of the infamous Brotherhood of Steel Outlaws.'

'His action was intended to garner local information, when in his words, the driver of the car, Sheng Kowalski, became animated and unresponsive to the questions he was being asked.'

'Is this when Nielsen, unprovoked struck the civilian?'

Proctor Quinlan was getting very agitated by the constant intervention from his commanding officer. 'Something was then said that led the Sergeant to intimate that the driver was a synth and that he might have to be detained. The synth then attempted to attack the Sergeant appearing to shout something to a third party who was hiding in the undergrowth of Moakley Park.'

'Did he say exactly what had been said?'

'No sir he did not.'

'But he struck the civilian all the same?'

'The Sergeant subdued the driver before vacating his power armour suit thus rendering him outside both visual and communication range.'

'He vacated his armour under what auspices?'

'In his defense the Sergeant said that he had alighted his armour so as not to cause undue fear to the young lady who by now was leaving the safety of the vehicle.'

'Did strike her also?'

'No Sir, she slipped on the wet surface on account of the heeled footwear she wore, and Nielsen was able, after a fashion to stabilize her footing.'

'You mean after he tried to sexually assault her?'

'Commander Maxson, sir, may I remind you that the Sergeant is not the one on trial here, please if I may be permitted to continue?'

'Go Proctor this is naught but a scrip for an impending movie I am sure.'

'It was at this point that his unit was attacked possibly by a group known to the driver or at least whom he may have signaled to on realizing their presence.'

'And this is where they lose their power armour, what a battle must have ensued.'

'In order to keep the civilian female safe from harm, the Sergeant and his men thought it better to lose their power armour in this instant than to jeopardize the life of the civilian.'

'How very noble, I am sure.'

The Staff Sergeant has given a full report including a description and names of at least two of the main protagonists…'

'That report has no baring in this matter, please do not discuss it further!'

Nathan who had been briefed by Natalie, Cait and MacCready did all he could at this point to keep his cool, what he was listening to was quite frankly just crap, but say something he must, 'May I speak on behalf of the driver mentioned in the report?'

'Sheng was at grade school with the civilian in question and someone both my former partner and I both knew of personally. He had a child's crush on the civilian and she received many a detention at school for setting him straight about her feelings for him.'

Nathan paused for a ripple of laughter.

'Unless the Institute was able to replace Sheng with a synth child with emotions, and at a time five years ago after which we had destroyed there Commander-in-chief, command structure and there base of operations as well, then I for one would be very surprised.

'Thank you Nathan.'

'One more thing, sir. Obviously I cannot possibly speak about the Gunner assault, but that is an area where they operate with impunity – perhaps this is an area we, the Brotherhood and the Minutemen, could work closely together pooling our precious resources.'

Elder Maxson thanked Nathan by name and turned to Proctor Quinlan, 'in summing up I think I have heard all I need too, what about you Proctor?'

Proctor Quinlon was not a man used to being a puppet for someone else's amusement and his reply was curt. 'No case to answer.'

'Are we all agreed then?' inquired Maxson. 'Excellent, thank you all for attending, return Knight Captain Danse to his duties he is innocent of all charges and his record is to be expunged to demonstrate just that.

Elder Maxson asked Nathan to stay back once all the others had left the room.

'Nathan you have been doing a great job in the Commonwealth and for the Brotherhood, and you are certainly good for morale every time you pay us a visit. Those six young scribes you helped to train are all now fine officers as well, did you notice young squire Stone on your way here?'

'Thank you Sir, it's always nice to be appreciated but I'm not sure what this is all about unless you are going to give me a medal that is?' Nathan Dewitt, always the cynic.

'I will get straight to the point. There have been a great many changes both in the Brotherhood and in the Commonwealth over the last five years, and so we must not be surprised if changes have taken place in a wider context still.'

Nathan nodded in agreement.

'Joining us via an on the line conference call today is the President of the New Republic of America, someone I was only made aware of myself only hours ago Nathan and he has asked to speak with you personally.'

Nathan turned his head automatically towards the large black speaker box over on the left of Maxson's video display screen. Maxson smiled weakly towards Nathan, Nathan guessed that Maxson was just as surprised as he was at this unexpected turn of events.

'Hey Nathan, may I call you Nathan? _(He did anyway)_ I have been following your exploits closely, ever since your name was made known to me, and let me tell you I am mighty impressed, we are very blessed to have you on our side.'

'Now I particularly like what you said about the Brotherhood and the Minutemen working together, I liked that a lot, did you like that too Maxson?'

Elder Maxson seemed to have been jarred from a deep slumber by that last comment and his reply was spoken hastily. 'Yes, absolutely have to agree.'

'Nathan a united Commonwealth would be a welcome addition to the Republic of America trust me.'

Nathan delved deep into his memory to search where he had ever heard of this Republic before, alas he could recall nothing, so he looked first at the speaker and then a Maxson vainly hoping that Maxson would magically come to his aid with an answer. The truth was Maxson had no more idea than Nathan, and shot a look of muted surprise back at Nate.

The President continued as though he was there in the room and that both men were riveted to his every word. 'There are a few areas of concern thought wouldn't you agree Elder Maxson?'

'The Elder nodded tentatively. Before realizing the President couldn't see him.

'So let me get this right, there are thirty two settlements in the Commonwealth all administered to by your Minutemen?'

'Err, policed by, that's correct.'

'Each settlement has at least one major road in and out of it all fully repaired and they are governed by Councilors and Aldermen, and they pay into some sort of tax system to the Minutemen.'

'Yes that's correct.'

'You have re-invented a Postal Service between these settlements, which I think is just brilliant, and you have some sort of vague treaty with all the remaining Super Mutants whereby they live freely out of state, up into the Green Mountain National Forest, yes?

Nathan confirmed what had so far been said.

'Good, Good Elder your people have briefed me well, thank you, now Nathan about those Super Mutants, would it not have been far easier to just kill them all than to have them running around in the mountains, possibly plotting an attack in the future?'

Nathan's face flushed for a moment but a brief pause allowed him to regain his composure. 'Mister President Sir, if I may explain, The Super Mutants are led by a singularly impressive mutant call Strong, who was raised in a human family by a teacher called Rex Goodman, this mutant can quote Shakespeare and is every bit as intelligent as you or I.'

'I'm sure I don't see the relevance Nathan, unless you are planning to open a theater!' the President rudely interrupted.

Undeterred Nate continued. 'Strong is being helped by a man called Brian Virgil who himself was a Super Mutant until I brought him a cure which I was able to retrieve from his old work station at the Institute, now he is as human as we are.'

'Super-Mutants were once human?' now it was the Presidents turn to be amazed.

'No, not all, most were grown in tanks from embryos, other were given a series of drugs that boosted what they had already.'

'Truly fascinating.' Was all that came over the loud speaker, as though the President wasn't at all bothered how they came to be, just that they are.

Together, Brian and Strong are working on a serum that could one day turn all super mutants back into humans, you see they were part of some insidious experiment by the institute. That is all finished now. We have a working treaty whereby they produce goods for us and we produce things for them, they come down to a trading post that I set up and everything is done for the Common-wealth.'

'Does that include guns, Nathan?'

'Yes'.

'That concerns me Nathan, that really does, what about you Maxson, does that not concern you?'

The truth was that it didn't bother the Elder in the slightest as any mutant attackers would have to break through hundreds of settlers and Minutemen who were themselves armed with superior weapons and armour, before they got anywhere near any of his knights.

'Sir,' Nathan interjected, 'they are low caliber pipe weapons no more than mere air rifles, they are expressly used to hunt wild animals and they are forbidden to be used against humans under the treaty.'

'Well Nathan that is just comforting to hear, I know I will sleep a whole lot better tonight for hearing that, what about you, Maxson are you comforted by this news?'

Maxson neither cared about the mutants nor the desire to agree with the voice from the speaker, 'The Super Mutants have been at piece for three years now without so much as a single incident occurring.' Maxson replied stoically.

'What about Ghouls, feral Ghouls especially Nathan, you haven't gone all bleeding heart Liberal over Ghouls as well have you and made them a cozy camp somewhere out of state?'

'Not sure what you mean Sir, Feral ghouls have been all but eradicated on the Boston side of Interstate ninety five, and are at least seventy five percent eliminated out from I-95 as far as Interstate four ninety five, and the other ghouls if I understand your statement are citizens of the commonwealth, and populate many of the settlements.'

'Hmm, Nathan that won't do, no, no, no, that won't do at all. In all my experience of ghouls you just can't trust them, didn't they attack Diamond City?'

'Mister President with all due respect that was one single ghoul six or seven years ago!' Nathan was sure to thank the prat who gave that statistic to the President.

Undeterred The President continued with his diatribe, 'How many incidents have been reported of those Ghouls attacking other settlers in each of the settlements?'

'None Sir.' Nathan replied glibly.

'None! I find that most incredible, none you say, and Maxson how can this be, what have you got to say on this matter?'

'Mister President I have to agree with Nathan, the Brotherhood have had no reports of any problems with ghouls of any description, certainly not since Nathan himself cleared out all nests of them five years ago as part of an ongoing mission for the Brotherhood.'

'What about the report we just heard from that Staff Sergeant, Nielsen?

Nathan groaned inwardly.

Maxson thought it was better he answered, 'Sir, again, with all due respect I have his full report and neither he nor his men came into direct contact with any Ghouls, feral or otherwise, they were jumped by bandits, apparently.' The last word was aimed at Nathan.

Maxson suspected the truth, Nathan thought to himself.

'They said that they saw them in a building,' the President continued, 'UMass wasn't it and that is inside your Interstate boarder is it not gentlemen? The Presidents voice seemed to lift somewhat as though he had score a touchdown.

'Sir I have the report right here,' Maxson thumbed through the pages. 'Let me see. One reported sighting of Ghouls, no other Intel, nothing, an anonymous sighting and that was all.'

Nathan felt a little uncomfortable on hearing this exchange, as he knew that the airship Valkyrie was hidden in that very location and Maxson would obviously have been aware of that fact, and anyway what settler or anyone else for that matter would report anything to the Brotherhood before contacting his Minutemen? That wasn't arrogance that was fact, the Brotherhood weren't exactly in the phonebook.

His thoughts were interrupted once more by the droning sound of the Presidents voice.

'Well Maxson I think that's very bad, very bad indeed, you should make this a priority, find out if there are ghouls present or not and then do something about it, they are an abomination do you understand me!'

'Yes Sir.' Maxson was well aware of what was in that area, like Nathan knew so why the pointless charade?'

The President continued unabated, 'Good! Ok I don't think I need to be speaking to either of you any more so I trust I can leave everything in your hands and will look forwards to seeing your results shortly, good day gentlemen.'

Elder can I speak off the record? Nathan smelt a giant rat but was going to have to be as cautious as a snake from here on in.

'Of course you can and Nathan and please call me Arthur.' The Elder seemed to relax after the conference call had ended.

'When did we get a President? Nathan was speaking as a member of the Brotherhood but not on behalf of the Commonwealth.

'Well as I said earlier, I found out myself only hours ago, but it appears he has bought his way into the Brotherhood and wants us to be his own private army.' Arthur shrugged as he spoke.

'And you are happy to oblige?' Nathan asked in mock surprise.

'No I'm not, but I am a soldier and I have my orders, whether I like them or not. Anyway it's not as though I can just drop everything and walk away is it?'

'Jeez, talk about sell your soul to the highest bidder!' Nathan spoke incredulously.

'Well if I ever feel that way I guess there's nothing to stop me just leaving.'

'Where is he, Nathan inquired, and more to the point where is this Republic he mentioned?

'In his head for all I know, Nathan I have over the years crawled my way across the Capital Wastelands fighting Super Mutants since I was fourteen years old and I didn't once hear anyone mention a President or Republic except for a super computer that nearly wiped out all human life on the west coast.'

Nathan already knew much about the war between the enclave, the new California republic and the Brotherhood.

'That said, Nathan, these orders come from the High Council, the people I do have to answer too. What I do know is that this guy is apparently at some secret location, with a bunch of power armoured suits, and they are sat on top of the entire gold reserve for the former United States of America, so I guess gold is king and he has lots of it.'

'So we all just roll over and play along with him?'

'Not at all, Nathan, but we do have to play along until we know more about his whole set up, and that includes all the other chapters of the Brotherhood.'

'So what do we do next, I would like to think we are on the same page at least, but I can tell you that the people of the Commonwealth won't buy into this.'

'Nathan we are on the same page, but we still both have to be careful, what you are doing is just great but now others are looking this way, perhaps with envy.'

'Is that such a bad thing?'

It could be Nathan, and I am not trusted by those on the inside of all this yet myself, so I don't know the bigger picture yet.'

'Well I for one won't let what happened in California happen here Arthur, no way.'

'Then we will need to be more careful, as it happens we have uninvited guests that have been dropped on me and they have trouble with a capitol 'T' written all over them.'

'Yeah, that Sergeant Nielsen guy is quite a character, you're reading of his account almost had me believing his side of the story, you know it was a pile of horse crap don't you.'

'Yes Nathan I do but I don't want to pursue him over what happened because I know it will expose your people, Cait was it – I'm pleased she kicked his sorry arse, honestly it saved me from having to take him down a peg or two myself.'

'Anyway the Sergeant is the least of our worries he comes with a company of soldiers that called themselves the Brotherhood Outcasts and they are real hard assess that make the rules up themselves if they don't like the ones they get given, and they have their own Airship called the Valkyrie she is moored just the other side of the UMass building.

'Really?' Nathan said in mock surprise.

'Yes they winched her down so that she sits behind the main building, sorry Nathan I should have told you.'

Cait and MacCready had already given Nathan a very detailed account of the Valkyrie, her were-a-bouts and crew numbers, but Nathan was playing dumb because he just did not know at this time just how much of a Friend Maxson was, or more importantly how much trust there was between them.

Nathan stayed silent for a few minutes and Maxson looked inquisitively at him, 'Come on spit it out Nathan what's on your mind?'

'Two things really, if you were serious about us joining forces, well they are sort of the same thing actually and they require a certain amount of ass-kicking.'

'Go on I'm listening,' commented an amused looking Elder.

'Well there are as you know old transit tunnels that run under Boston and even a couple of serviceable over land tracks as well, look can I show you on your monitor display it would be easier.'

Maxson turned to the consul behind him and punched in code which turned the forward observation window into a giant screen, then he tapped away again at the keyboard which turned the monitor into a large map of the old State of Massachusetts.

'Ok Nathan what do you want to show me?'

Nathan moved over to the large screen.

'It's touch sensitive.'

'Now it was Nathan's turn to be amused, yeah, sorry Arthur I was using this sort of tech in grade school I just didn't realise you guys had figured it all out yet let alone got it up and running.'

'Nathan the Brotherhood have been collecting and cataloguing this stuff for nearly fifty years now, we just don't believe the world is ready to embrace it again yet.'

'Nope, you are probably right, anyway let me show you what I have planned and have gone through with all the elected leaders of each of the settlements then you can tell me if we have a partnership or not.'

Nathan zoomed the map in so that it showed Boston at its center but a large curved road that ran from Salem in the north to Quincy in the south. 'This semi-circular road is all that high rise concrete your flyboys have to keep avoiding as and when they leave the Prydwen, back in day they called it an Interstate freeway or I-95, with a little bit of I-93 below Quincy.'

'Everything on the Boston side of that freeway is what we (the Minutemen) call the safe zone like I told the President, or it is at least above ground. Now it is peppered with underground stations some of which we have cleared completely and others where the roof is not safe we have left, however for every mile of tunnel we expose and patch up, we hit a pocket of ferals and the whole thing closes down until Cait and the boys can get down there and clear them out.'

'Now if I just trace my finger along this line you will notice every so often these tracks, that was called the Red Line it runs under Boston to a place just past Quincy called Braintree, we want to open that whole stretch up and get something moving along those tracks once more, it is the most direct route and we need Quincy.'

'So Nathan what is the other problem apart from the feral ghouls?'

'Quincy! We have knocked the Gunners out of that place out so many times that I think I know every square inch of street like the back of my hand.'

…and?

'Then we get a group of settlers together to go down there and start a new settlement only to find the Gunners are back in numbers and so we start the whole fight all over again.'

'Have you tried negotiating with them?'

'Yeah, there are not interested, hell I even offered to buy them out but they just laughed.'

'So let me get this right Nathan, if we worked together, the Brotherhood and the Minutemen, then you could keep Quincy from getting re-enforced by the Gunners and if we got the Red Line working you could keep it in our hands permanently, am I correct?'

'When you put it like that it does sound a bit one sided but is not my intention I can assure, when I think about the Brotherhood floating around in the air, what forever, is that it? Don't you want to find some place to put your roots down and call home?'

'I've never really given it any thought, I, we the Brotherhood have a main base, it's called Adams Airforce base. We are sent out on these protracted missions to collect any salvage we can from the old world, its mostly tech stuff and then when the cargo hold is full we head back there and dump it all and start all over again.'

'That's it, seriously?' Nathan found it hard to believe, incredible in fact but something had changed that or somethings didn't add up.

'Ok, so how does this President factor into this mighty plan?'

'That I don't honestly know, Nathan, it does shift things about a bit.'

'Damn straight, this guy is talking about a land grab surely?'

'We tried that in California remember.'

'Yes you did and just how well did it work out?'

'You know it nearly finished us.'

'Yes and it did finish those people in California, settlers not soldiers, children, livestock, need I go on?'

'So you think the same thing is going to happen here in the Commonwealth?'

'I don't know Arthur perhaps you could tell me?'

'The truth is I don't know, yes I mean there is talk, but then there is always talk.'

'Well I'm surprised that you haven't mentioned my little display at the fort earlier to Arthur.'

'Why should I, you are no threat.'

'But I might be if I had to take sides.'

'Nathan I am really trying so that nobody has too.'

'Then help me.'

'Just exactly what am I helping you to do apart from clearing out some gunners?'

Nathan smiled broadly without saying another word.

'Ah, the Valkyrie and the Outcasts.'

'Arthur, they love a good fight, but what then, again be honest, if they don't like the rules then they make them up to suit themselves.'

'So what? They help clear the Gunner's out and you give them some land to settle on is that part of your plan Nathan?'

'Arthur they were made for this mission and you know it, and we get them stationed as far away as possible without losing them altogether off the map, it's like the wild west of old down there, heck we could give them special status, make them Marshalls.'

'Seriously Nathan, getting back to your plan, do you know how or why those Gunners keep trying to take Quincy?'

'Same reason as me really, strategic significance, we have two settlements that can only be accessed by either going through Quincy, so the Gunners tax them to high heaven, or risk going around the outskirts and get hit by Raider gangs or worse. Both options are leeching man power away from the plans we have in place for projects nearer to Boston centre.'

'I have a base set up in Milton about seventeen minutes west of Quincy, normally an outpost would consist of no more than ten regular minutemen and say five support staff. However, Milton has about fifty Minutemen and service staff, it is a real drain on resources as I said.'

'What if we hit them from the air, Nathan?'

'The problem is that they have missile launchers that can easily take out a Verti-Bird, my people are working on a ground solution as we speak.'

'You mean those five vehicles you have?'

'We have a lot more than five, we just can't train drivers up quick enough, back in the day everyone had a car or motorcycle, now nobody seems to know which end to sit in let alone make it move anywhere.'

'Well that's a problem I really can't help you with as technically the Brotherhood would say that vehicles are technology that is to be confiscated.'

'What really?' Nathan's expression changed from amazement to shock.

'Anyway we digress, Nathan what exactly do you know about these Gunners?'

'We know that they are getting re-enforcements from out of State, look follow this line where Interstate ninety five heads south to a place called Providence that is where we think they have a main Headquarters.'

'Providence, Yes I think we have had dealings with them, it isn't just a supply base Nathan it's a whole cityscape with quite a few hundred if not thousands people there. What we don't want is a civil war though.'

'Alright, so you need what? A small detachment of knights to accompany your diggers who are clearing out the underground railway and another force, around say the size of a full company to help rid you of these Gunners, am I right?'

'Yes if you think you can spare that amount of man power.'

'So what is your plan to attack the Gunners, the underground missions seems very straight forward, but this, well I would like to know exactly what I am letting myself in for.'

'So we have a small base of operations set up at a place known as Westward Station where Interstate 93 and 95 meet up. I-95 that is where we aim to sever their lines of supply and communications coming up from Providence.'

'Ok I see, that bit looks simple enough, do you know what resistance you are likely to meet there?'

'Hopefully it is just a guard post and nothing more, the most people that have congregated there at any one time was fifteen, and then it was because an east to west convoy was running late, otherwise no more than five Gunners.'

'How well armed are they?'

'That we don't know, because nothing has happened to warrant those guards shooting weapons unless you count the odd foray on the ground to catch a rabbit or two.'

'You said you planned a ground attack, can't we just drop in on them from the air?'

'Well I doubt that they have anything other than small weapons but we need to secure the winch that comes up from ground level first so that none of them can make a run for it in that dense undergrowth.' Nathan stabbed his forefinger at a patch of green on his map.

'Now if you notice the way the interstate is laid out, here Yankee Division Highway runs from that guard post right up into the Gunner main base at Quincy, if we could send two squads here, one either side of the carriageway, then look over at this other road that feeds in, Pilgrims Highway, and we do the same again that leaves just the Boston side of I-93, here, along Southeast expressway, then we have them in a trap.'

'Sounds good Nathan but what about the rest of their soldiers down on the ground, I can see two large warehouse complex's one either side of the Interstate, what have you got planned for those, especially if they dig in?' Arthur flashed a concerned look at Nathan.

'Right, this is where I use the Greyhounds, three on the far side of the Interstate and three this side, each vehicle is fitted with twin 30mm machine guns that will shred anything they have and if that doesn't work, each one is fitted with a .37mm gun with explosive rounds.'

Maxson was impressed, 'What if they get hit by rocket launchers or grenades?' He inquired, in such a way that made Nate wonder if he was asking out of concern or generally fishing for Intel.

'Wouldn't matter, those gunners would need some serious anti-tank weaponry to take these carriers out'. Nathan spoke with the up most confidence.

'The bulk of the Minutemen ground forces would attack from the west along the Chickatawbut Road and from all the Recon Intel we have those gunners in the Park are either new recruits or Raiders that have thrown there lot in with them, either way we aren't expecting a lot of resistance.' Nathan was sweeping his hands across the map as he spoke and Elder Maxson began to realise why people rallied to Nathan's calling, his charisma was quite intoxicating.

Nathan continued with his outline unabashed, 'So if you see here along Rockdale Street there is an hotel, that's where we anticipate most of the gunners recruits to be hold up, further over to the right is where we believe they are stockpiling the things the take, then if you look at these smaller buildings, here, here, and here these will be their guard outposts.'

'That looks like it will take a lot of ground troops to take out and then hold the place how confident are you Nathan?'

'It's what we practice, where I come from we called in urban warfare and Major General Shaw is our resident expert, but honestly with the CM8 Greyhounds it'll be straight forward, I anticipate the real fighting will but up on the Interstate.'

'Why there in particular?'

'It's where the gunners have two highly trained and motivated people in full power armour supported by twenty veteran Gunners with Combat Armour and weaponry or at least the equivalent.'

'Ah are these two in power armour the ones we are saying attacked Nielsen's patrol?' Elder Maxson knew better but for moment he was leaning towards the vault dweller and his grand idea's and further away from that pompous ass Elder Hartley.

'Once the bullets start to flight no one will care, but yes why not, anyway don't under estimate these gunners they will be well dug in and we can't risk shooting up the Interstate the whole thing could come down if we do.'

'Well I think I've heard enough, when do you propose this mission take place Nathan?'

'At first light in three days' time, we just need your go ahead for those Outcasts to link up with us as per plan, no Verti-Birds though this is a pre-dawn strike so silent running, even the Greyhounds will hold back until the fighting starts.'

'Just one other point Nathan, what is stopping the gunners from all joining up on the interstate?'

'Good question, we have Howitzers that can lob an explosive shell up to seven miles away from where they are situated, the idea is to create a lot of noise and confusion before the Minutemen move in. Your Knights will strike up above and while their lasers are almost silent, the hope is that all the muzzle flashes will spook the green horns amoungst the gunners. Whether they do or not the Greyhounds will take out any and hopefully all of the raised gantries that link the tops of houses with the Interstate and the 37mm guns will take out the guard posts and then focus their fire on the Hotel.'

'Are we taking prisoners Nathan?' Maxson asked but not out of concern for the lives of the gunners, it was a strategic question based on the numbers of enemy combatants verses the amount of men it would take to guard them.

'Initially we hit them hard and fast and unfortunately for them that means their casualties will be high, after that if they have no stomach for fighting them I see no problem in taking prisoners, after all we need to know what is driving them to keep setting up camp every time after we drive them away.'

Okay Nathan let's start putting my people here through their paces it sounds like they have a lot of catching up to do and very little time to do it in.

The Brotherhood Outcasts were split into four teams of five Knights, one team was to clear the right side of their part of the interstate highway the other team to clear the left. They were given their objectives and told to hold the raised sections of the Highway only, until they were relieved by the Minutemen who themselves would be in two fire teams of five and recognizable in there matt silver power armour which bore the white logo; a lightning bolt across a musket with stars in the background, they would be armed with Laser Muskets which although were more powerful than lasers were a lot slower to load due to their crank handle winding mechanism.

The Minutemen men on the Milton side of the Interstate would have an overhaul unit strength of thirty, and those on the other side would have twenty men. Nathan would be leading the force of thirty with Cait and MacCready would lead the twenty, resistance on MacCready's side was thought to be minimal at best.

Verti-Birds were used to move all of the Knights to their starting locations and all except two returned to the Prydwen and Valkyrie respectively, the two that didn't were landed at the township settlement at Milton where the Minutemen had their Headquarters for this mission, these two would form a reserve with Captain Danse and his squad of knights on the first while on the second bird was Lieutenant Rhys and his squad.

22


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER FOUR

Timing was everything in battle. The victors were usually the side who made the least amount of mistakes and kept rigidly to the plan, you see the thing about bringing allies together in a common cause to fight a single-minded enemy was that the enemy always held the advantage. Put quite simply: the allies would always be jostling each other for first pickings at the feeding trough.

Nathan along with his contingency of Minutemen, were crouched in their starting positions in an area below the Interstate, known as Purgatory Woods. A quick glance at his watch told him three minutes to go, holding up his right arm he signaled using three fingers to indicate as much to his men.

Nathan shivered involuntarily as the cold February morning closed in on him, the grass was long, wet and any fallen leaf attached its self to him, and his men fared no differently. He could see many a swirling breath being exhaled from those equally anticipating, equally cold men and women. Unconsciously and without taking any notice, Nate took one last fleeting look upwards towards the Interstate Highway where the Outcast knights would be making their way forward.

He wondered if they were as cold and apprehensive as he and his troops were, and that's when his eyes opened wide with shock and his heart sank.

Captain William Decker was leading the first squad along the Southeast Expressway towards the interchange where the Gunners were dug in. Decker was the leader of the Brotherhood of Steel Outcasts. They all were wearing a full complement of T-51 Power Armour and each were armed with laser rifles. No heavy weapons were being used by the Brotherhood, under direction from Elder Maxson, because the interstate was already falling apart from too many years of neglect after the last 'Great War' over two hundred years before.

'Thank God for calibrated legs' Decker whispered into his headset to no one in particular. Each of the power armour suits had calibrated legs with built in shock absorbers. This muffled the sound their heavy armour made, keeping it to a minimum with little or no vibration on the road surface. This was known 'silent running' in military parlance.

Staff Sergeant Amir Nielsen led the two squads of five knights coming from the opposite end of the interstate, called Pilgrims Highway, and having just caught his commanding officers whisper in his headset, replied that his men were already in place. They were four minutes early. 'Captain, I have eyes on the gunners should we engage them, sir?'

'Negative Sergeant, we are too early, those Minutemen will not be in position themselves yet.'

'Captain there are no sign of the Minutemen below and Corporal Shaffer is signaling multiple movement ahead with the Gunners. Either way they are waking up or they have made us, sir.'

Damn those Minutemen thought the Captain, Damn them all, this should have been a Brotherhood operation – 'no heavy weapons, indeed!' He wouldn't have even bothered with a fire fight. He would have just blown the bridge supports and brought the whole of the Interstate down on top of those Gunners. This folly will cost him good men and women this day. Before he realised he had given the order, he was shouting into his headset, 'Engage on all fronts, engage on all fronts!'

A second later and the almost silent whoosh of the Knights lasers spat forward superheating the cold morning air before they bit home, hitting Gunners, equipment and barricades alike.

If that initial burst of laser fire caught the minutemen off guard it most certainly surprised the Gunners, most of whom were still dragging their weary bodies out of their makeshift sleeping places.

Unlike the newer T-60 power armour the older T-51 and T-45 had no target identification parameters. The thermal camera picked up heat sources and the soldier in the suit pointed his weapon and fired. That first salvo reaped no less than eight hits, however some of those 'hits' were behind the laser reflective barriers that the Gunners had erected. Six of those shots just harmlessly veered off at various angles into the air.

The Gunners on the interstate should to all intense and purpose be in disarray as they were caught cold, and only a handful of the twenty or so were even in a position to offer any kind of response. As five of the Gunners went down three of the knights followed on their heels, a single rocket fired by Corporal Tessa Penaloza, a former Raider, struck the left arm of one of the knights in squad B, catching fast in between the soft rubber sleeve and the metal frame of his power armour before exploding.

The resulting explosion killed the knight on his immediate left but not before it had hoisted them both in the air causing their bodies to collide with Staff Sergeant Nielsen, shoving him down hard on his back and knocking the wind out of his lungs. As the Sergeant lay there pinned by the other two bodies he was able to wave his squad forward, before laying completely flat on his back.

Why should I bother? This is not our battle, who the heck did that trumped up Vault dweller think he was? Five minutes in the Brotherhood, one rescue mission and Maxson had promoted him to Paladin! Nielsen was thinking to himself, he himself was a thirty year veteran and still only a Staff Sergeant.

Sod it all to hell! Nielsen thought, let that clown play toy soldiers if he wants to.

By the time the Brotherhood Knights had fired off the second round of lasers the Gunners themselves were in position behind heavy fortifications. The fight began in earnest. Those twenty or so Gunners were armed with a wide variety of weapons, from Grenade launchers to .22 caliber pipe pistols.

Nathan turned to Cait shaking his head from side to side. Those blasted Outlaws! Trust them to blow a perfectly timed operation for what? Personal glory? He thought to himself incredulously.

It was time; the four batteries of CM101A1 Howitzers opened fire, for one minute they rained down 105mm High Explosive shells on the Rockdale Commercial and Industrial estate.

One minute after the barrage had ended the Minutemen began there slow advance. Alongside Nathan down on the Chickatawbut Road and about one hundred yards on his immediate left were two buildings. The nearest was an old University campus and the one on the other side of it, furthest away, was a medical facility. Neither had lights or as it would appear any guards posted.

The first outlines of sentries on duty were ahead on Granite Street, their cold breathe gave their position away easily, even though they huddled down tight behind their barricades, Granite Street ran across the Chickatawbut Road.

Nathan thought it prudent to dispatch three fire teams to check out the first two buildings that were directly ahead of his squad, they had not been hit in the barrage as they were considered of low _(unoccupied)_ value. One team would be dispatched to each building and the third team set on over-watch.

More Laser fire flashed from the road above Nathan's eye line. This time the relative quite was torn apart, the warm up was over and now a myriad of heavy and light weapons began to play, the deadly orchestra began its death concerto. Round two on the interstate ended with Captain Decker's squad of ten men managing to hit only two targets, killing them both, while the pinned Staff Sergeants squad who themselves were three men down, managing only one single hit themselves. The Gunners hugged any barricade they could, realizing that they were surrounded and probably thought they were out gunned as well. From a hurried salvo of their own, the gunners snatched away the lives of another two Knights, one from Captain Decker's squad and the other from Nielsen's.

Nathan looked across at the large square-ish building on the opposite side of Granite Street and at a sign that read Mens Wearhouse. It had to be a play on words, he thought or a dyslexic store owner. That is where he saw the flicker of flames just outside in the carpark area.

The Guards had a brazier to keep them warm but it allowed Nathan to see the silhouettes of at least three of them. How he wished now that he and his men had worn T-60 power armour with their recon visor displays, that not only gave them a clear outline of an enemy, it gave details of his distance and whether there was an obstruction between them. The camera was also able to outline enemy combatants in red and friendlies in blue.

Nathan raised his right arm and made a tightly clenched fist which signaled to his men to halt. Then he pointed his index and fore finger at his own eyes before turning his hand round towards those guards, then he held three fingers up to single how many he saw. Next he started to signal to each of the two men fire teams to peel away, indicating which of the warehouse buildings or shops he wanted them to go to.

It was only moments later that the first local shots rang out, and they came from behind the Minutemen in fact from one of the two builds behind them, they were occupied after all.

The three guards were now alert and looking passed Nathan's position and towards the sound of the gun fire, they too raised their weapons and began advancing across the road, it wasn't until they had all three stepped past Nathan that he and his companion, Cait, stood up and attacked them from behind.

Nathan hit the nearest man with the butt of his weapon knocking him down straight, Cait ever the dramatist took the nearest one to her out with a swift karate style kick while at the same time twirling around and slitting the throat of the third man/women it was hard to tell in the gloom, with her knife.

Nathan dispassionately put a single shot into the back of his prostrate enemy's head, then he signaled his group to move forward now and attack. Each two man fire team had their own objectives however because of the darkness and the unknown number of Gunner's they were supposed to keep to a firing line where by no one team got too far of the others or fell behind either.

Round three on the Interstate was beginning to get bogged down as neither side now wanted to show themselves and shots were at best speculative, but as lady luck sometimes shines Sergeant Baker, the third in command of the Gunners, was half stood trying to load a fat boy nuclear grenade launcher when Captain William Decker's shot hit the missile causing it to explode.

Four more Gunners including the Baker now lay amongst the fallen in reply a gunner hit Corporal Bernard Scott straight through his right eye, a lucky shot no doubt but the god's of war are always on hand to temper lady luck it seems.

Nielsen's squad took no casualties that round and instead of emboldening them, it caused Corporal Kylee Shaffer to check their advance while one of the squad went back to check on the Staff Sergeant.

Nielsen was covered by now in blood especially around his mid rift, the knight who had come to his side was fearful of moving him less his guts spilled out from beneath his armour, little did he know, and Nielsen was not about to tell, but none of the blood was his own.

Directly in front of Nathan and Cait was a slight embankment and to the right a stone wall that rose slightly more before turning the corner into Rockdale Street. Once up the embankment it was a further hundred yards to a short flight of broken concrete steps leading up to a covered promenade.

All of the stores windows had been boarded up and the double glass doors had been re-enforced on the inside with boards too where the toughened safety glass had shattered but was still in situ, no light was visible from the outside but on Nathan and Cait's helmet display there were the outlines in red of two armed figures just the other side of the main doors in.

Nathan signaled to Cait that she was to hit the push down bars that would cause the doors to open manually, and he would then kick them apart.

The Gunners inside had no idea what was happening outside other than all the noise but would still have been prepared to shoot whatever came through the doors. Nathan and Cait both had night-vision sights whereas the Gunners did not so when the double doors flew open it was the minutemen who had the drop and fired first.

Cait hit the female Gunner directly in front of her with a shot from her Combat Shotgun which tore a hole the size of a baseball through her upper chest, blood and sinew splattered the left side of the man she was with, he froze unable to pull the trigger of his automatic pipe pistol, Nathan dispatched him with a single shot from his Combat Rifle straight between the eyes causing his head to jolt back and the rest of his body to lift from the ground before falling backwards completely.

A quick sweep of the interior of the ground floor displayed no other life forms and Nathan whispered to Cait for her to start checking for Intel that might give them some idea why this place was so important to the Gunners.

Outside fierce fighting had erupted all over the place both at this location and on the Interstate above, the three Greyhound infantry carriers had been called forward to joined the party, and the distinctive thudda, thudda, thudda, of their 30mm guns raining hot steel down on the gunners everywhere, tearing through already smashed buildings like a hot knife through butter, adding to the sheer panic and terror those untrained gunners were having to chow down on. They were like drowning men in an unforgiving ocean surrounded by sharks with no rescue in sight.

On the Interstate the battle was running out of steam and man power neither side willing to sacrifice another soul for the butcher's bill. The gunners fired wildly but hit not one Knight during this exchange, the Brotherhood allowed the Gunners to shoot first because they were order to pick their targets and meant waiting until they at least caught sight of them.

The order was a smart one as two more gunners went down and still the Interstate stood, not a car, lorry or piece of its structure had been moved from place.

Nathan and Cait hadn't been looking for long when Nate heard the familiar sound of a rocket launcher being used, none of his men had them so it must have been a Gunner. He ordered Cait outside to get a visual on who it was and where the rocket was being fired from exactly.

Up on the Interstate the rocket had struck two of the Outcast Knights, the ones in the mix and match T-45 and T-51 armour, it had caught in one of the power armour suits and had exploded catapulting both knights backwards, they in turn hit a third knight knocking him off his feet before they both landed on top of him, effectively pinning to the ground.

The first cannonade from the 37mm High Explosive rounds on the three Greyhounds had hit the hotel building that Nathan had said was occupied by the bulk of gunners, it exploded with a terrible rage spewing burning hot shards of brick, wood, metal and clumps of charred flesh in every direction.

The Gunners who were inside during the minute long howitzer barrage had lepped out of their beds to fetch all the ammunition that had been stored on the upper floors down to the lobby area before it was hit by the High Explosive shells, unfortunately they had taken it out of the frying pan and placed it in the fire.

The resulting exposition when the ammunition took a direct hit was spectacular from the point of view of the Minutemen, the Gunners were too busy dying to appreciate the show.

Gunner men and women appeared in numbers now from out of the raging inferno, some were alight from the explosion wearing only tee shirts and shorts like they had not long been a in bed, some it was hard to tell they just burned, their skin blistering and popping, others appeared minus limbs, all had given up the fight by fell prey to the hungry minutemen who had them in their cross-airs.

Knight Dean Lyons turned just in time to witness the plumb of red hot fire and debris as it rode far above the buildings and up above his position huddled on the interstate, his eyes widened and his mind was fixed in awe at the incredible sight.

It was possible from his vantage point that if he wasn't wearing power armour the searing heat alone would have peeled his skin back so close was he to the event, however, the rocket that Gunner Lieutenant Clint Berman had fired directly at him from only yards away interrupted anything else the knight was thinking has the ensuing explosion from that had severed his head from the rest of his body.

Nathan lay on the ground without looking away from the oncoming figures he was fumbling around with his left arm trying to connect to Cait. He caught hold of her leg she was facing away from him and he tapped her but she didn't respond.

'Damn!' Was all he could say before recovering his left hand to grip the under section of his gun. ' _Thud, thud, thud, thud,'_ Nathan pulled the trigger and didn't stop until the entire magazine was empty, body after body fell crumpled to the ground before him, they never saw him in the gloom but he picked them off one by one using his night vision scope.

When it was safe to do so Nathan stopped reloaded and then turned slightly while still lying flat against the ground.

Cait still hadn't moved and now he saw a dark patch of liquid pooling under her head, Nathan noticed then that her helmet was lying a few feet away from her his heart began to sink, no, no, no not again.

Just then another Minuteman had run over to Nathan keeping low, patting him to get up and move to cover.

Sir the new comer said, not that Nathan was listening, we need to find cover there is a madman up there with a rocket launcher and those Knights don't seem to be coping with him by themselves.

Nathan could only stare at the minuteman. Come on Bex, come here drag his mate to cover and I will get the General.

Across the opposite side of the road was a small oblong building that was once a bank, the newcomer had realised that its walls would have been thicker and stronger than any of the others around so that should act as a forward command post, he had stumbled across his leader amid the carnage and chaos,

Immediately on entering the former bank building the newcomer pulled off his helmet and began to pour some water from his canteen over his head, he gestured to Nathan to do the same. Then he went over to Cait and Bex to assess the injury.

Nathan came too in time to catch the other minuteman.

Bex says it's a head wound that is why there's so much blood. She then unbuttoned a pouch on her utility belt and pulled out a roll of bandages and began to dress the wound, Cait's head lollopped to one side like a ragdolls as soon as Bex had let go, her eyes were open staring straight ahead at Nathan. He felt tears well up in his own. Cait was wild, a true product of this insane post bomb society, uneducated and uncouth but as he stared into her eyes he realised he was trying to save her every bit as much as he was the Commonwealth.

Cait represented a sort of renewal, Piper was the polar opposite, she was everything he had lost and tried to get back. Cait was the future she represented salvation, if he lost her …

'Sir, we need a plan those Brotherhood guys are pinned by some wanna be with a missile launcher.' The minuteman pointed up towards the Interstate before he continued. 'We have been pretty badly torn up down here, but our fight is over. What do you want us to do, sir?

'We sit tight while I try to contact whoever is left up there, anyway we don't know for sure we got all of the Gunners down here.'

Nathan tapped the intercom button that hung down from his helmet chin strap.

The signal was not getting through, Nathan said that there was too much interference to the Minuteman and told him he would need to get up there himself.

Nathan was able to patch through to the other fire teams though, they had all reported back that all enemies had been eliminated. It was better than he had first thought but that was scant consolation to his Minutemen. Eleven dead out of Thirty, and Nathan new a lot more would lose their lives if he didn't reach those Knights up on the Interstate.

Fighting on the Interstate had now all but ground to a halt, as indiscriminate sporadic shots rang out from behind well-fortified barricades.

Outside of the bank, Rockdale Street ran all the way to the raised interstate and on his own Nathan knew he would have his best chance of reaching the engineers lift at the base of one of the pillars, he asked the remaining minutemen to target their fire on the Gunner in the power armour suit. Look for the soft areas on his for arm and the back of his knees he told them.

As Nathan wound his way to the Engineers lift through pockets of thick black acrid smoke he saw once more the sickening debris of war around him. Will this ever end he thought to himself as he stepped over severed body parts and ducked into burning buildings for partial cover, everywhere the ground was littered with spent ammo casings, dropped weapons and other equipment, and that pervading stench of burning flesh. Nearly three hundred years later War never changes.

Every minute or so a new rocket would fizz past on the way to its target, there was more than one Gunner with a launcher Nathan thought. The lift Nathan had headed for was up on the first tear of the two tiered Interstate. That was fine because it was probably going to be a bit noisy when it descended to the ground and those Gunners were on the top tier.

As the lift carried Nathan up to the fight he was able to survey where the fighting had taken place and where it was still continuing. His Minutemen in power armour where a long way to the west. Too far away to help in this battle, they must have also met stiff opposition, and the Greyhounds were of little use as the elevation of the Interstate was too high for the .30 caliber's and Nathan was not willing to risk using their 37mm cannon's on the weak bridge structure.

Both groups of Brotherhood Outcasts had pinned the Gunners down right above his position but had obviously got pinned down themselves in containing the situation. The lift moved slowly and its motor squealed and railed against any upward movement, as it rose Nathan became aware of the Comms link being restored.

Captain Decker was asking Corporal Shaffer if she could see where the remaining gunners were, Kylee said she couldn't, and she quickly told her commanding officer that Squad B had lost four men including the Staff Sergeant.

The Captain confirmed his casualties were lighter with only three killed but that he had no eyes on the enemy nor did he know there strength only that they possessed at least two missile launchers.

As the lift came to an abrupt halt on the first level of the Highway, Nathan was quickly able to see that this was level with some of the taller building from this section of the battle field and that they had ramps and walkways that had connected them to the first tier. Most of which were broken or looked unstable due to all the weapon fire and grenades that had been used up here. There was no one alive.

Ahead and to his right Nathan saw that his side of the seconded tier of the highway had collapsed forming a ramp. Using this he could gain access to the second tier, he needed a plan. All around him were broken vehicles some at odds with each other some almost like they had been parked up and left by their owners.

There was a bus which Nathan had edged tentatively towards incase someone was hiding inside. No-one was, but it had, had all of the seats removed and replaced by mattresses and footlockers, he counted eight of each. The footlockers contained personal effects but nothing he could use at this moment.

Two more missiles zipped somewhere ahead of Nathan and he had caught the chatter from both squads of Knights that neither had found targets.

Nothing else to do but slowly walk up the ramp and try to figure out what was happening, at this time Nathan knew neither where the Gunners were nor the Brotherhood knights, and he didn't want to break into their channel incase that gave his position away.

The ramp was steep and it had many holes in it so walking up normally was going to be hard, the ramp was pointing away from where he guested the Gunners were embedded and so it might be more to his advantage to walk up backwards.

Another wave of weapons fired, this time to close to Nathan for his own comfort caused him to stop and crouch, and he waited and listened. Gunner Corporal Tessa Penaloza grimaced as she felt the heat of the laser pierce and then quarterise the wound on her left shoulder.

Her Lieutenant flashed an optimistic look at her, she returned his with a thin smile of her own, the power armour had took the worst of it but it didn't stop her shoulder from burning like heck.

By now the glare from the rising sun was also adding to Nathans problems, as he inched his way up he would be shielded by a piece of iron gantry, then the very next step the full brightness would hit him, then it was darker again.

He flicked the night vision lenses up and out of his way but that didn't help much, he suddenly caught sight of movement over to his right but what was it? The sun hit his line of sight again. Nathan refrained from discharging his weapon, whatever it was didn't fire at him either so he continued another single methodical step up.

Nathan quickly crouched, he was directly in line of fire, and nobody had seen him. That was too close, Nathan thought as he breathed in sigh of relief.

Feeling somewhat naked without a power armour suit Nathan wound his way forward once more while all the time keeping his body as low to the carriageway as possible.,

The two Gunners were on the other carriage way over to his right and they were behind barricades. Directly in front of his position above was the rear end of another lorry its cab had slewed across the left carriageway blocking it completely. He turned to look up the ramp he was on, just as well, he was one foot step away from a gaping hole and certain death if he fell.

Another volley of shots pricked at Nathan's conscious effort to avoid detection, the missile shot past Nathan and into the bonnet of a car that was already a burn out wreck, unfortunately that was the present hiding place of private first class Ted Cooke another member of Nielsen's Squad B.

After the explosion it became the final resting place of the Private first class. Nathan waited for Squad B to reply, their lasers found only the ceramic surface of the barricades which effortlessly deflected those shots away from the Gunners.

Sliding his boots towards the girders on his left that had come down with this piece of roadway Nathan now reached out his right arm gingerly. Once he took a firm hold of the metal he preceded to move up once more, but keeping his body as low to the road surface as he could.

One of the Brotherhood Knights saw him and held his hand up signaling the General to stop. The Knight like his four companions were huddled behind a car that was turned sideways, it afforded them their cover, he signaled that he would throw a grenade and that the general should then move as quickly as he could to join them.

The grenade hit the enemy barricade and exploded, the gunners were already taking cover and Nathan stood up sharply almost toppling as he did and then leaning forward ran for cover.

The Gunners had no grenades left or they chose not to retaliate in kind and Nathan had noted that he had not heard any more rockets being fired. It didn't take long for the Knight Kate Wiley from Squad B to fill him in with the situation.

Nathan asked if they knew where the minutemen knights were, but they didn't. Looking back across the I-93 though it was easy to see where the other pocket of fighting was from the laser fire. They were just over a mile or so back and they too were completely bogged down.

The plan was simple call for back up, if these Gunners had no more rockets then bringing in the two reserve Verti-Birds should be safe enough, they were tough enough to with stand small weapons fire just nothing bigger.

Nathan needed to walk away from the barricade to more open section of the Interstate before his helmet comm could pick out the other minutemen down in the ruins below. Nathan ordered them to track back under the interstate until they found the next service lift – it should have been no more than half a mile away from the one he took. Nathan looked on his map before confirming that it would be near Randolph Avenue, he waited for confirmation before continuing with his orders.

This group of Gunners, whose numbers were greater than those here on Nate's part of the Interstate, were almost at the Minutemen check point where I-93 met I-95 before it turned off heading south. Once more he awaited confirmation before he continued.

They would be engaging the Gunners from behind so try to keep the element of surprise for as long as was possible and finally Nathan said that the Gunners would be lightly armoured but must have weight of numbers on their side as they had pinned the ten minutemen knights.

The Brotherhood Knights with Nathan were told to sit tight with heads down. It was no more than about ten minutes later they herd the drone of the two Verti-Bird engines coming from the direction of Milton.

Nathans comm link burst into life but was cut to ribbons by static and background noise, The Verti-Birds wanted the Knights to release smoke bombs to signal where they were so that they did not get fired upon.

The knights dutifully obliged and within seconds thirty millimeter solid slug bullets were tearing through anything in between the smoke trails. The Gunners opened fire in reply with everything they had, these were veterans and would go down without a fight.

Tokka, tokka, tokka, the noise of those Verti-Bird guns, stopping briefly while the Birds flew Nathan's position but once they had re-aligned themselves the sound began again. The knights and Nathan watched as shell casing after shell casing lepped from the side of the belching guns. Metal and wood splintered in every direction and the Gunner barricades were sliced apart by the .50 caliber machine guns that belched hot metal from the confines of the Verti Birds.

No sooner had the second round of fire began than the battle was over signaled by parts of the roof structure of the highway falling in, then almost totally silence. The Verti-Birds made one more complete circle of the second tier before signaling that it was clear for the Knights to go over and investigate. Nothing survived, the two power armoured figures they along with their comrades had been all but obliterated turning into nothing more than bloody chunks.

Nathan signaled for the knights onboard the Verti-birds to descent down on to the second tier of the Interstate. He was very relieved to see his old friend Danse come down first. Given the circumstances they might have embraced briefly but in Danse would have crushed Nathan who was not in power armour so they had to settle for a nod of the head instead.

Nathan asked that all the fallen Knights be loaded on to the Verti-Birds and taken to Knight Captain Cade who was the medic on the Prydwen. He then turned to address Danse and his two squads of T-60 armoured Knights and the twelve remaining Outcasts, asking if they fancied getting their suits dirty once more and they shouted loudly as one voice, Ad Victoriam!

Nathan pointed to where the Minutemen knights were pinned by the larger force of Gunners and simply said, go get 'em.

Knights in T-60 power armour could run comfortable at speeds of up to thirty two miles an hour and those Outcasts about thirty so they should arrive just as the first minutemen from Nathan's ground force were being ferried up the engineers lift.

All but one of the dead Outcasts were accounted for so then Nathan sent word to the Prydwen to send her remaining Verti-Birds to come pick up the other wounded or dead from the ground fight.

Staff Sergeant Amir Nielsen had been very lucky, Captain Cade, the Doctor from the Prydwen had told him so. The Doctor however did not see the Staff Sergeant, as the explosion from one of the Gunners rockets had hit his two fellow knights, knocking them backwards and on top of him. There Amir lay until the fighting was over and then emerging as the hero - the last survivor from two squads of knights.

Captain Cade had given orders that Nielsen have three days bed rest even though there were no visible injuries, so he was left in his cot at the field hospital in Milton by the orderlies.

It wasn't until the next morning after he had awoken that Nielsen had realised just how lucky he really was. There in the very next cot to him was a women with a large bandage wrapped around her head, but this wasn't just any women, no, no, no, this was that Irish tart who had so humiliated him in front of his squad – why though, he thought to himself, would they bring an enemy combatant into a Brotherhood tent?

The Staff Sergeant called out for an orderly.

A young man in his late teens appeared looking very concerned.

Hey what's the big idea putting her in here? She ain't one of us.

The Orderly looked confused. That is Colonel Cait Kenny of the Minutemen, I don't understand, is there a problem?

No, no, not at all, I think I must have hit my head or something, look you be off now and I will rest a little I think.

No sooner had the Orderly ducked out of the field Hospital tent doorway than Nielsen sprang out of bed and over to the unconscious Colonel.

Oh just look at you my pretty, he drooled over Cait who was oblivious to him even being there. One quick sly look around to make sure nobody was watching and he ran his forefinger the length of her body stopping a couple of times to speak intimately with her.

Nielsen solicited no reaction from Cait so feeling a little emboldened he trace his forefinger around the outside of her lips. Cait murmured and her lips parted slightly.

Now she wants to talk to me, Nielsen said to nobody in particular, then he bend his ear towards her soft red lips – what was that Missy? Did you say you can't breathe?

Perhaps if I loosen these buttons on your tunic, one, two, three…

The Orderly returned with some water for the Sergeant but on seeing him unfastening the top three buttons on Cait's uniform he just froze.

What's up lad, she was choking, I didn't know what to do, get over here instead of standing and gaping, you fool.

The Orderly apologized to Nielsen and handed him the water after which he attended to Cait. Did she speak?

No it was more of a choking sound, oh I do hope I didn't make things worse I was just trying to help.

Help myself wasn't I pretty, pretty. The Sergeant was saying to himself in his mind.

I will fetch Captain Cade back I think she might be taking a turn for the worse.

Once more the young Orderly left, left them alone, together.

Nathan was still atop of I-93 rummaging through anything useful that might have been kept or hidden in any of the many boxes and crates, when a call came through.

Danse explained that the Minutemen he had sent arrived ahead of his knights and had opened fire almost immediately, the Gunners replied with a single ragged volley before seeing his knights arriving and they just surrendered.

Three Minutemen Knights lay dead and twenty four Gunners including their commanding officer, the other eleven looked young and frightened half to death on seeing all the power armour arrayed against them.

By the time that Nathan had arrived at the Interchange between I-95 and I-93 Captain Danse and his knights had helped all of the other wounded Knights and Minutemen to the Verti-Birds and secured the prisoners in an ammunition store. The Minutemen that weren't injured were sent back to the industrial estate were there had first battled the Gunners there orders were to take stock and find out what they could about why the Gunners had dug in there.

Nathan met up with Danse at around noon when the sun was highest in the sky, today was going to be another hot one, but then it always was after a nuclear storm had blown through.

The smell from all the dead Gunners was going to attract more than just the large blackbirds that squawked and cooed from the side barriers that still ran along the edges of the Highway.

'So what's the plan?' asked Captain Danse.

Nathan said that they needed to burn or bury the dead before the smell attracted bigger things than just the Blackbirds, of course the Knights were all in air filtered power armour so they couldn't smell what he could.

Given the location Nathan opted to pile the bodies up and burn them.

Danse said he'd put the prisoners in the corrugated tin hut just across the way.

Nathan walked over to the door of the hut gulping in mouthfuls of the cool air that washed up over the sides of the Highway as he did. As he opened the door the first time he quickly shut it again and called over to Lieutenant Rhys who was the nearest Knight to him.

'Rhys where are the prisoners?'

Rhys could not hear him because of course he was still helmeted so Nate called Rhys once more this time depressing the comm link on his Helmet first.

Rhys waved his hand to signal he would come over to Nathan.

As he approached, Rhys removed his helmet, his hair hung down around his head in greasy lengths and sweat beads raced each other down his face. 'God,' he proclaimed 'it was sure good to get that thing off,' he waved his helmet at Nate.

'Yeah,' he continued, 'you noticed too.'

'I noticed that there is a hut full of what, kids?'

'Pretty much looks like it but boy do they know how to pull a trigger and just where to point' 'the business end of a gun.'

'Rhys are they all like this?' Nate was concerned at the tender age of the gunners.

'You mean the dead ones Sir?' Rhys asked impassively.

'Yes I mean the dead ones!'

'Yes Sir.' Rhys couldn't care less what age they were so long they stayed dead, they were his enemy.

'Look stay here I am going to fetch them outside before they roast to death in that hut.'

'Do you want me to get some of the boys over here to help?'

'Rhys they are kids, no I don't, we can handle this.'

Nathan frog marched the sorry looking bunch of preteens and a further three other children that 'didn't look a day over six outside.'

'Get them some water Rhys.'

'More water Sir?'

'What's that supposed to mean?'

'We tried all that before you got here, they even refused chocolate, Sir.'

Nathan knelt down before the six year old girl and looked her over, she was wearing a ridiculously oversized helmet on her head which fell down over both eyes, she wore a checked green flannel shirt that was basic Gunner issue but it buried her so it looked more like a dress.

Her hair just managed to hang in pig tails below the rim of the helmet and her chin was filthy with dirt and probably carbon discharge from her weapon. She wore ill-fitting boots that came up to her knees and they had left bloody red welts where they rubbed against her skin.

Hello sweetie my name is Nathan Dewitt, what is yours?

No reply.

'Would you like a drink of water?'

No reply.

'Hey look you must be really hungry and I have a beef jerky bar, would you like that?' Nate offered the girl the sealed silver wrapped bar.

Her eyes wandered over to the shiny wrapper that glinted in the sun, but she still refused even to acknowledge him there.

'Shall we just slip that helmet off, you must be really hot under there?' As Nate moved his hands towards the girl she flinched. One of the other older looking youths took a step forward.

'Zero eight-zero one-twenty two seventy seven!'

Nathan let his hands drop and began to stand up.

'Say what?'

'Zero eight-zero one-twenty two seventy seven, SIR!'

Nate looked at Rhys who just shrugged, 'well at least we know they can speak, sir.'

Nathan addressed the youth directly, 'what is that sequence of numbers?'

The youth just looked up at a point above and over Nate, there were tears welling up in his eyes but he fought them back, defiantly refusing to repeat what he had already said twice.

Nathan turned and walked over to Lieutenant Rhys. 'We need help and I think I know a way we can get them to speak, Rhys my head set won't reach the Prydwen but yours will, can you ask them to send a Verti-Bird to the fort and pick Natalie and sheng up, tell them to bring their equipment.'

Rhys asked if the equipment was to torture the youths, but Nathan scoffed at him and said no he had meant their camera equipment he had an idea but they needed to work fast.

Danse indicated that all of the dead Gunners were now in a pile and ready to be burnt, but Nathan asked them to wait.

If everything went accordingly Natalie and Sheng would be here in approximately forty minutes in the meantime Nate asked if the Knights could jury rig some shelter that wouldn't cook the kids.

Nathan busied himself looking through all the Gunner weapons that had been collected together along with any other pieces of equipment and personal effects. None of the enemy combatants appeared to be older than fifteen yet to look at their bodies they seemed to be older, they were in great shape none of which made any sense.

Danse asked if they could possibly be Synths, but Nathan didn't think they were although that was the age of Shaun, the Synth boy he had agreed to take in as his own child but whom he knew would never age.

'Clones?' Ventured Danse.

'I just don't know, I think we need Captain Cade to run a full blood works on our prisoners but then that wouldn't explain little miss lethal weapon over there, she cannot be a day over six or those two smaller boys with her.'

'Perhaps they clone them in batches.'

'Ok Danse just give it up, please.' Nate's mood was turning as rotten as the air around him.

The Verti-Bird carrying Natalie and Sheng touched down on the highway just a few yards from the huddled figures of the children, Nathan went over to bring them up to speed and then tell them about his plan.

Rhys watched Nathan try to entice the petty ragdoll looking girl out away from the rest of her comrades, smirking at Nathans complete failure.

'Let me try Nate.'

Natalie really just needed to get the child to stand up so that Sheng could photograph her.

Nathan told her not to bother with treats they just didn't work, so Natalie asked if she could do something a little more radical. Nathan nodded without having an idea what she would do.

Natalie walked over to the pile of guns on the floor there she crouched down and looked closely at the weapons before selecting a pipe pistol with an extended stock, it looked big enough for a child to hold with both hands.

Natalie walked calmly over to the child and crouched in front of her, 'hey there my name is Natalie and my friend over there is called Sheng, he has a camera, look see that box in his hand, that is a camera.'

The small child looked nonchalantly at Sheng, her eyes widened for a moment as she fixed an icy stare on the thing in his hand.

'Do you know what it is?' Asked Natalie in a soft tone.

The child looked back at the pipe pistol in Natalie's hands.

'He's going to shoot you with his camera!' Natalie chose her words to exact a response.

The little girl moved at lightning speed, first she grabbed the pipe pistol out of Natalie's lose grip and then stepped forward almost knocking Natalie over screaming a defiant war cry as she pulled the trigger. 'Click, click, click, click, and click.'

Sheng took shot after shot of the angry faced little girl in the oversized helmet until she realised that there were no bullets in the gun and she let it just hang limp in her right hand.

Natalie took the weapon away from the little girl and soothingly told her that she had done very well, and that everything was going to be alright.

Natalie found it hard not to cry as she reached into her pocket and brought out a handkerchief, she dabbed the end of it in her mouth and then moved close to the little girl before dabbing her dirt encrusted face.

The little girl finally made eye contact with Natalie as every time she wiped down the child's face the helmet would slip and hit the bridge of her nose, she would then push it back up again so that she stare into Natalie's eyes.

Natalie began to wonder if using this little girl for the sort of propaganda that Nate had in mind was the right thing to do.

Natalie reached gently over to the helmet and lifted off the little girl before placing it on the ground at her feet.

'Now I don't know about you but I am so hungry,' with that Natalie started to unwrap the silver foil from the beef jerky slowly and deliberately and then she bit into it.

The Child just stared right into Natalie's eyes, almost into her soul. Natalie chewed provocatively on the beef jerky. 'Hmm this is very good,' she stated. Then Natalie offered the little girl the rest of the bar, 'look you are all clean again and you must be so, so hungry?'

This time just like with the pipe pistol the girl's hands moved quickly almost feral in snatching the bar away from Natalie and stuffing it into her mouth.

Natalie once more praised the girl before she turned swiftly on her heels and asked if all the children could have a beef jerky bar, although reluctant the children each in turn accepted a bar and soon were hungrily chewing away.

Natalie stood up and walked over to Nathan.

'I'm Impressed. The power of the press, your sister would have been mighty proud of you.'

Natalie didn't feel proud though she felt pity and she felt sick in the pit of her stomach, 'Nathan what the heel is going on here, these are not soldiers they are kids, please do not tell me that those bodies over there are of kids as well.'

Nathan didn't say a word for the truth was he felt her pain and there anguish and a whole lot worse.

'We need to get them strapped in to the Verti-Bird, Come on people let's get them to the base at Milton and let's finally burn these bodies.'

Five of the boys were put into the Verti-Bird that brought Natalie and Sheng here and the other older girls and the three smaller children were placed in a second Bird that had brought Brotherhood scribes and some supplies for the Knights.

Natalie and Sheng would wait with Nathan until he went back to Milton on the next incoming Verti-Bird.

Nathan called Danse over to talk with Natalie and Sheng.

'What's the plan Chief?' Danse asked as he nodded to Natalie and then remembering Sheng was there, to him as well.

'First I want Natalie to run a full front page spread in the paper using the best picture of that kid as she tried to shoot Sheng, God did you see her face, it was priceless!'

'Nathan!'

'No really I mean it, if we are going to unite the Commonwealth then we need a common course and that little girl has just handed it to us, even the Brotherhood will have to get on board.'

'Nathan, none of this feels right.' Natalie hated her part in this but felt that Nathan was at least trying to do the right thing, instead of just pointing a gun at it and pulling the trigger.

'Something is going down with those gunners, Natalie you can speculate just like Danse said, are they synths? Clones? Or just child soldiers breed for war?'

'Nathan the Brotherhood take youths into the ranks at fifteen you know that you have trained loads yourself over the last five years.'

'True Danse I have, but they were not allowed to train with live ammunition until they turned sixteen so there is a big difference not to mention they are certainly not allowed any frontline duty until they turn eighteen.'

'Ok, no more questions we need to start tying up loose ends and get some answers. Danse I need to get back to the Prydwen and talk to Maxson, your squad need to return to Cambridge, somebody needs to take over here and shore up the defenses while Natalie and Sheng you two have a newspaper to put out.'

The journey back to the Prydwen was a pleasant one for Nathan he was alone in the passenger section of the Verti-Bird except for the pintle mounted gun and its operator. Outside the sky was clear and the sun was beginning its decent into early evening, there was a cool breeze coming through the open door were the gunner was situated and the wine of the twin engines was somehow comforting.

Nathan wondered how Cait was, he had no idea if she was even alive, personal chatter was forbidden in mission time, what about Shaun left at Fort Hagan – he seemed happy enough but how could you tell?

Nathan's day dream was cut short when the pilot spoke via the head set, 'We're just coming round to dock with the Prydwen now Sir.'

Elder Maxson was waiting for Nathan on the forward deck he seemed consumed in his work when Nathan actually entered the room and didn't act like he had noticed him.

'Arthur,' Nathan said loud enough to garner his commander's attention.

'Nathan, pour yourself a drink you look like you need one.'

Indeed coming straight from the battlefront Nathan did look a sight, his clothes under his combat armour were torn in places and the once olive green Combat armour was now several shades of black and brown, he had cuts and bruises and the smell, the smell was that of a charnel house.

'I have asked Proctor Quilon to join us, he is on his way, please take a seat Nathan.'


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER FIVE

Quilon entered the room, 'forgive me for being late I was hoping the Doctor could give us an update on his initial findings; I'm sorry Nathan I have some rather unpleasant news for you though first.'

Nathan's heart sank. Cait it had to be Cait he thought. Regret closed him down, he became breathless he could hear their voices but he couldn't see them anymore, Nathan Dewitt was sinking into the darkness and there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it.

When the lights came back on Nathan realised that he was lying on his back, on something soft, he was in a room that was compact and unfamiliar there was light, a light, it was high up above in the centre of the room.

'Nathan?'

He tilted his head a little to his right, there was a face beaming at him a smile that suddenly blew the darkness away, it was her, she was here at his side, his guardian angel.

That was it. He knew it now, they were a team from now on wherever he went she would go too, 'that's an order!' He shouted.

'What's an order?' She asked looking both happy and puzzled at the same time.

'That's an order!' He shouted again.

She laughed as she moved closer to him, leaning over her beautiful round face close to his, her piercing green eyes, her red flowing hair drooping down around her cheeks.

'You're crazy you know that right!' Her voice was so soft now when she spoke – gone was that thick Irish drawl.

'I love you…'

Now I know you're crazy!' She was laughing and squeezing his arm as she did she lent closer still and gave him the slightest peck on the cheek.

The next time he opened his eyes the room was empty, the light seemed brighter and things started to come into focus better this time.

He reached for the sides of the bed to pull himself up and something pulled at his wrist, it was a small tube that was hanging from a hoist, an alarm sounded, not like there was danger but like he had tripped something locally.

The door of the room he was in opened and in came young female wearing what looked like a scribes outfit.

'Welcome back Paladin that's quite a sleep you've had,' she said in an optimistic and friendly tone.

'Sleep?'

'Yes, yes, you were wounded and nobody realised then you passed out on the flight deck talking to old man Quinlon, don't let him hear me call him that though ok, our little secret.'

Nathan felt like he had a truck sat across his chest.

'You must have been hit by shrapnel, it had somehow tucked in under your combat armour, you were very lucky it was inches away from your heart.'

'Scribe…'

'Scribe Sandra Delgadillo, I'm assistant to Captain Cade, unfortunately he is back over in Milton so I'm all you have right now but he said you should be fine, you just rest.'

'How long have I been here?'

'Three days.'

Nathan seemed to be panicked by that and he attempted to swing his legs out of the bed.

'Hey where do you think you are going?'

'I need to see her!'

'Ah, you mean your friend, she's right here.'

'What?'

The Scribe turned to the door – 'You can come in now.'

'Hey Handsome how you doing?'

'Cait! It really is you…'

'Erm, just a minute let me check.' Cait began to pat herself down.

'Shut up and get over here.'

'Hey you're not going anywhere Paladin, Sir.'

'Scribe Delgadillo, you are dismissed, and Sandra…'

'Yes Sir?!'

'Thank you.'

'You're welcome Sir.'

'Sandra is it? Why you have only been awake a few minutes and you are already on first name terms, should I be jealous?'

Cait was smiling from ear to ear as she shuffled over to Nate, 'so you want to sit up or what?'

'Nope I wanna get up or at least get out of bed.'

'You're attached remember.' Cait pointed to the drip in Nates arm.

'Help me, please I need to stand up.'

'Sure, sure just give me a second to fetch that thingy ma' jig round the bed then you won't rip the thing out of your arm again.'

Cait helped Nate to his feet, she still had her arms around his mid rift trying not to press on his ribs were the enormous white bandage was wrapped.

'Nate don't just stare at me say something even if it's just ouch!'

He was looking at the side of her head, her hair was shaved and she had a gash about three inches long that had been stitched up, the rest of her hair was combed over the other side.

Cait squeezed him gently.

'Ouch!' He said, like he meant it.

'Oh no I'm sorry it's just that you were lost again you had that glazed look about you.'

'I was thinking.'

'You were thinking?'

'Yes, about you.'

'About me?'

'Ok, if you are just going to repeat everything I say then I'm going to get myself a pet parrot.'

'What's a parrot,' Cait asked, shaking head.

'It's a bird!' Said Nathan in despair.

'Well surprise, surprise!' Cait said mocking Nathan terribly.

'Not that kind of bird, this one has feathers!' Nathan couldn't quite believe that Cait had never even heard of a parrot.

'Oh yes, a bird with feathers, like they have on stage at the third rail, in Goodneighbor?'

'Okay Miss Kenny, don't make me have to chase you!' Nathan grimaced has he moved.

'Oh and then what, Paladin? Are you going to bleed to death all over me? She asked quizzically.

Nate lent closer to her, his lips meeting hers just as the last word slipped out of them.

'Hmm!' she pulled away, 'now I think I'm beginning to like this game.'

'Will you just shut up for one minute?'

Their lips pressed against each other as their arms intertwined.

Nathan's head began to swim but he was not going to be the first to pull away, not now.

cough

Nate pulled away from Cait!

Elder Maxson was standing in the doorway.

'I'm sorry if I was interrupting anything.'

Nate pulled Cait back for one last kiss before whispering, 'I love you' softly, and then he released her from his arms.

'Glad to see you are both doing ok, although I'm not sure this is a good time to talk to you though as I am the barer of bad news.'

'It's alright elder, can Cait stay or is it private?'

'No, no Cait knows already, look Nate take a seat, please.'

'That Bad eh?

'Remember the little girl from Interstate 93?'

'Yeah, the one Natalie got to do all that stuff for the camera?'

'That's the one,' has Maxson continued to talk Nathan felt Cait slide her fingers from her left hand into his right hand, her grip began to tighten – here comes the sucker punch he thought.

'Well the boys on the Verti-Bird had a hell of a job strapping her and those other two little boys in, and somewhere over Hemenway Pond she wriggled free and just jumped.'

'She did what?' Nathan could barely envision what must of occurred.

'Yeah I know it sounds crazy, but she just stood on the edge of the V-Bird looked back once and just let herself fall.'

'…and nobody tried to stop her, what the hell Arthur?!'

'Of course they did! But it all happened so fast, I'm sorry.'

'Why?'

'Quinlon reckons it's something to do with the crap those Gunner goons filled their veins with.'

'What does the Doctor say?'

'Preliminary finding show high doses of a dozen different drugs in all their systems which leads me to our next problem.'

Nate was still shaking his head, Cait asked him if he would be ok, he still was shaking his head.

'We might have to send them all back, Nate we have no idea what they are on and they are starting to go cold turkey, the Doc says they could all wind up dead inside another couple of days if we don't.'

'No way can we, what just cut them loose they would never survive if they are as bad as you say they are now. Good grief we might as well shoot them all now and put them out of their misery.'

Cait almost shouted, 'I think I might have the answer!'

Both men looked at her.

'Vault 95 the clean room, Nate that's where, she checked herself in front of the elder, that's where we went on that mission remember.'

'Yes, that's right, Arthur what if we could get those kids over to Vault 95, it was set up as an experiment in drug rehabilitation and the clean room has a machine that can flush anything out of the system.'

'Vault 95, yes I think I recall the report you made, is it near a settlement you established at Dedham?'

'Yeah just a little to the northwest of the Somerville Place farm community, a place almost surrounded by water called Nobles Camp if I remember correctly, jeez it must be less than half an hour away, why didn't we think of it sooner.'

'It could still be crawling with Gunners, Nate, we would have to send a team in first to sweep the place.'

'Where's MacCready?'

'Still sorting through all the stuff you guys found at the industrial complex off I-93.'

'Can we spare him and his team?'

'Would it be a stupid question to ask if you two also wanted to go?'

Nate said, 'yes' at the same time Cait answered 'no.'

'Arthur, Cait can strap my chest while you prep MacCready and his team, we will need two V-Birds to pick all those kids up anyway.'

Cait said boldly, 'there's only two things in life worth doing. . . Nate joined in with his very worst impression of Cait, Getting drunk and kicking arse!'

'…and you still trust me to bandage your chest?'

'Come here!' Nate held out his arms to Cait and she duly obliged by sliding effortlessly into them.

'Hmm, are you sure we want to go on this mission, you know MacCready is really good at this type of thing.'

'MacCready is really good, mocked Nathan, should I be jealous?' Nathan was about to smile but at that moment Cait took a little tug on his bandage and he yelped instead.

'You deserved that you dirty old man,' she declared.

After dressing the chest wound tightly Cait helped Nate on with his Heavy Combat armour chest piece. 'You should probably go in your power armour Nate,' she said.

'Nope, it's too restrictive and anyway what about your head wound?'

'No problem, Danse lent me his pilot hood and with a helmet over the top of that I should be fine.'

'Oh my word, Danse as well – do you have any female friends or are they all men who fall over themselves to help you?'

'Ha, ha, ha, not nearly as many as you Nathan, - just called me Nurse Sandra – Dewitt!'

'Touché, beautiful.'

Come on we need to get you into the rest of your body armour then I need to put mine on.

It wasn't until Nathan was bringing Cait's Chest armour down over her head, after the back of his hand had brushed lightly against her face, did she give such a shudder as to startle him.

'Hey, is everything alright Cait?'

She didn't answer, her eyes were looking far off into the distance.

Once the armour sat gently on Cait's shoulders Nate held her. 'Cait what is it?' He asked concerned for her state of mind pre mission more than anything else right now.

A single tear rolled down her left cheek, it was like she was trapped in a nightmare.

It took several more minutes and a whole lot of soothing gentle words from Nate to bring her back to the here and now. 'Sweetheart you gave me such a scare what's wrong.' Nate looked concerned, he hadn't ever seen her this scared before, the very thought chilled him to the bone.

Cait tried to smile, but her eyes told a different tale.

'I don't honestly know, I just saw him in my mind, I was back at the field hospital and he was there too!'

'Who Cait, who was there?' Nate's mind was reeling.

'That Staff Sergeant, Nielsen. I could feel his hands all over me.' Cait was almost breathless as she fought to convey the pictures that she recalled to mind.

'What?' Nate was enraged at the thought of any man taking advantage of another human being, but this, this was incomprehensible to him.

'I don't know Nate, honestly I'm fine, I just think I was day dreaming – seriously!

Cait tried to hold the tears back by forcing another smile, her voice was wavering and she was losing the battle, but the look of shock and horror on Nate's face was almost too much to bare, so she swiftly moved forward to kiss Nate reassuringly on the lips, 'I promise, I'm good to go.'

Nathan Dewitt rose from the bed shaking his head trying to dispel the images he had, murder was in his heart this day but not for the Gunners whom were his enemy that's for sure.


	6. Chapter 6

CHAPTER SIX

Elder Maxson was finishing his post battle briefing with Captain Danse on the foredeck of the Prydwen, when he was alerted to the approaching Verti-Bird by one of his Scribes.

Maxson shuffled over to the door to speak with the scribe in hushed tones before turning back towards Danse.

From the look on his commanding officers face it was trouble.

'Would you like me to leave, Elder?' The captain asked compassionately.

'Erm, no, no, that won't be necessary Captain, that won't be necessary at all.' The Elder seemed lost in thought for a moment as he moved over to the table that stood near the outside window. Shuffling papers that he had already sorted through once indicated to Danse that all was not well. His thoughts like those of the Elders were interrupted by the door being forced open unnecessarily fast. In strode Elder Howard Hartley whose face was as red as blood and contorted, like he was trying to deal with something very unpleasant in the politest way possible.

Danse thought about saluting but doubted at that moment whether the Elder from the High Council had even noticed his existence right then.

Barely able to speak, such was his indignation, Elder Hartley brought his fist down hard on the table. Those efficiently tidied documents and files now scattered as if they themselves ran from the wraith of the High Councilor.

'Damn it Maxson! Have you gone completely insane?' Hartley hissed and spat the words right out of his mouth, glaring at his equal as though he was a new life form, which he had just discovered.

'And a very good evening to you too Elder.' Retorted Maxson sarcastically.

Enraged beyond his own self-control, the High Councilor swept his right hand across the length of Maxson's desk top dispatching everything on it hither and tither.

'Seven good men dead and one more in hospital badly wounded and for what? May I ask?'

Danse wished that he could somehow just sneak out of the door right at that moment, this was after all way above his pay grade. However he noticed his exit, even if he could, was blocked. Hartley had not come alone.

Maxson stammered as he spoke. He was not accustomed to anyone bawling at him and especially not in front of junior ranks. And in his own office. 'They were my men to command you said so yourself not one week ago.' If Maxson was going to continue he didn't get a chance, he was cut off sharply.

'You sir, are a babbling fool who is incapable of commanding his men. Yes! I gave you command of those men and one week later half of them are dead or wounded, and for what?

What business did the Brotherhood of Steel have fighting Gunners?' Hartley continued to reign his fist down on the table so that now not a single thing remained upon its surface.

Enough was enough! Maxson thought, barely able to restrain himself his eyes might have looked away from the other Elder for a moment, and it was in that moment that he noticed the others stood in his doorway. One was clearly a Proctor and the two others even more junior ranks. He fired back at Hartley with all the venom he could muster without walking round his table and physically striking him.

'Every word is contained in my report and that report has already been dispatched to the High Council. I suggest that if you want to read it you turn round right now and leave my ship! Before I have you thrown into the brig on a charge of gross dereliction of duty and lose the key.'

If Hartley were in the room alone with Maxson he might at this point simply have drawn his laser pistol and shot the Elder, such was his utter contempt for the man and his relic of an airship. However, the Brotherhood had their code and for the sake of that alone he must suffer in his eyes this buffoon for a few minutes more.

'Maxson, you see the Proctor standing behind me, he is here to relieve you of your duties forth with.' Hartley left that last point to hang in the air just long enough to hammer home his absolute power.

'Balderdash! You have no more authority on my ship than a common chorus girl! Except you seem to want to make a bigger entrance than she would, now if you don't mind I have a mission to plan with the Captain here.'

Hartley turned to the two men other than the Proctor stood in the doorway. 'Adams and Delaney draw your weapons and fire at this man if he utters one more word.'

'Yes, Sir! Came the duel response, as in a single action both men raised their laser rifles, one towards Maxson and the other at Danse.

'You ARE relived of your command and you will find that my authority comes with me from the High Council. In fact it was their will all along that I come here and take over. So honestly it didn't matter what you did from that first meeting until now, you were never going to be allowed to continue.'

Maxson stared incomprehensibly at the other Elder.

'Oh don't be like that Maxson, it had long been our (the Councils) view that you had gone soft on the natives, after all they are running around playing policeman in vehicles now I here.'

Hartley rounded on Maxson again enraged as he spoke, 'Vehicles, BANNED TECHNOLOGY!' his voice was almost a squeal now.

'I came here because our masters already thought that you had gone rouge, and what do I find?'

All eyes were fixed on Maxson, as if there gaze might hold him in place so that their hands wouldn't have to. Except that is for Danse, he had slipped his laser pistol out of its holster and was now pointing it straight at Hartley's back.

Danse spoke calmly at first and was completely ignored, so the second time he upped his tempo, 'Shall I shoot him where he stands Sir?'

Both Maxson and Hartley turned to look directly at Danse, the three others stood as they were like statues. Blocking any more of Maxson's men from entering the room.

Hartley was the first to reply to Danse, his voice now calm and collected but taking a hard line none the less, and 'So the lapdog finds his bark. How very touching.' Hartley then turned to his Proctor before continuing, 'Look Lieutenant Rhys was right after all. You know Danse, he said you would remain loyal to your commander here. So it pains me to inform you that you too are under arrest.'

Maxson was shell shocked. The Brotherhood was his life, everything he had ever believed in laid bare, exposed before him like some tawdry exhibition for others to gawk at and say, poor fool. 'What of my men?' he enquired barely able to hold on to his reserve.

'They will of course be re-assigned, unless they too wish to share your fate, Maxson.'

'My fate?' Maxson inquired as though he knew already what lay in store for him.

'High treason, Maxson. That is the charge against you, and before you decide that I am the Devil incarnate it might come as a surprise to you that some of your own people here are amoungst your accusers.'

'Permission to shoot the High Councilor, Sir?' retorted Danse dispassionately as though this whole affair was nothing more than a parlor game that had lost its glean.

'You see now the duplicity of which I speak? Danse you are an even bigger fool than your commander if you think this will all just blow over given time. The game as they say is up. Now drop your weapon and follow Adams and Delaney to your holding cell.'

Danse looked longingly at Maxson, his eyes pleading with his commander to offer something, anything, but Maxson was a defeated man, his shoulders drooped and his head turned agonizingly slowly towards his Captain, 'lower your weapon soldier, that's an order.' He said, his voice now devoid of any emotion. It was over and Hartley had won.

The Prydwen was winched down to the ground where she hovered only a few feet from the roof of the old terminal B building. Low enough for all of her crew to disembark using only short ladders, six were set out, three on each side.

Out they came like some biblical procession only the complete opposite to the animals going into the ark, they were silent, down cast and there demeanor was grim.

Elder Maxson was the last to alight so that he could be paraded before his entire compliment of crew by Hartley. Hartley who savored every last drop of his victory.

All of the Prydwen's crew were ordered to leave their power armour and other equipment behind with the exception of Proctor Ingram, and there they stood shoulders sagging. Lancer – Captain Kells, Proctor's Quinlon and Teagan, and thirty six other ratings, including Professor Scara, the civilian scientist from Diamond City along with Doctor Maddison Li, whom Nathan had brought back with him from the Institute.

Those who were missing from this line up were Knight Captain Cade and the rest of Danse's Recon Squad Gladius, who Maxson assumed were still at the field hospital in Milton.

Maxson looked down the rank and file, holding his head high until he noticed that one of his Scribes, Head of Biological Research, Senior Scribe Nehiah Mukherjee, was standing with Elder Hartley. She had been the one to betray him then, crestfallen, now he too was only able to look at the floor.

Fifty one prisoners frog marched to a hotel right in the middle of the airport complex. There they were broken into smaller groups who in turn were given rooms to stay in, the doors then locked from the outside by their captors.

Hartley told them that they would await processing, those who wished to join his crew, and those who would be sentenced for aiding and abetting Maxson.

When at last Maxson was brought to the room to which he was to be confined, Hartley told him that the good Doctor Cade would be joining him soon.

What of the Recon Squad? Had they too deserted Maxson to join Hartley? Maxson's question was greeted with a smile, not a smile like the cat that got the cream, but a smile of quiet confidence no less.

Nathan and Cait both arrived at the former Department of Public Works in Milton together, MacCready was already there along with the six CM8 Greyhound vehicles and tree CM113 Armoured personnel carriers each carrying a squad of eleven Minutemen. The building was already alive with Minutemen who were coordinating the fourth coming raid on Vault 95.

'Hey, MacCready thanks for getting here so quickly.' Nathan shouted above the noise of the diesel engines.

'No problemo, Boss man.' MacCready nodded towards Cait as he acknowledged Nathan first.

'So, where's all our metal friends? Do yer think they've all had second thoughts, after all they took a beating at Quincy?' Cait chimed delightedly.

'I have to say, I thought the sky would be full of them Verti-Birds. We'd better see if anyone inside knows anything.' Nate flashed a look of bewilderment at MacCready as the three of them moved towards the main door of the building.

The former DPW building had been transformed on the inside into a high tech listening post which was commanded by a young minuteman, Communication and Information System Specialist Willard Bowens.

'Bowens, what's our status?' Nathan asked curtly.

'Sir, I'm not sure to be honest.' Willard's cheeks grew redder as he spoke, he was clearly embarrassed about something.

'Go on soldier, spit it out!' Cait crumpled her bottom lip as her eyes flitted from MacCready to Nathan in anticipation.

'Well, we have been trying to tie in with the Brotherhood Comms and everything seemed fine until about twenty minutes ago, sir.'

'Then what happened?' asked MacCready.

'They switched channels, and every time they caught on that we were snooping they switched again, until they finally tuned to an encrypted band.'

Nathan pursed his lips, this was not normal behavior and especially after the successful mission at Quincy. 'Ok, so tell me what you guys do know.'

'Sir they, (the Brotherhood) have abandoned the field hospital, shortly after you two left in fact. They cleared everything out and we tracked all of their Verti Birds returning to the Prydwen. They landed a couple of minutes ago.'

'Hmm, so you think they've had a change of mind?' inquired Nathan.

'The hell they have. Those tin plated malcontents have ditched us, but what about the children we captured, they need the treatment or they will die.' Cait cursed the Brotherhood with many expletives, until Nathan held up his hand and gently patted her on the shoulder to soothe her mood.

'Bowens, what else have you picked up?'

'This is the confusing piece of the puzzle, we have an operative at the market, the one you set up in the departure lounge at Boston Airport, Annie Bergner.'

'Go on…'

'I think you should hear the recording as it came through to us here, sir.'

Willard pressed a button on the console in front of him, and called for quite in the room.

static

Hey Willard, are you hearing this?

It's Annie, Annie Bergner over at the Airport, it's all kicking off.

static

Knight's in older Power suits are pointing guns at the Knights on the gate into the base. static

They are heading over here, more power suits. Hey what the heck? Take your hands off me, I'm a certified trader. Get your hands off me.

muffed voice This area is now under martial law, please evacuate immediately.

What about my stuff, you big ape?

static

(Heavy labored breathing).

static

'Shish that noise, what's that noise?'

muffled voice 'None of your business. Now keep moving!'

static

'Ye Gods it's coming down! The airship. The Prydwen it's coming down on top of the main terminal building.'

'What the heck?'

'Hey quit shoving, will yer?'

static

Silence.

'That's all we have, Sir.'

'Where's Bergner now?'

'We lost contact after that, then you walked in sir.'

'Can we try personal Comms to Comms links with any of the Brotherhood who were in mission with us? They must still have their channels open, no?'

'I can sure try, sir, give me a moment.'

Nathan turned his gaze from Cait to MacCready, and back again, there expressions were as blank as his own.

Moments passed as Bowens and his team flicked switches and pressed buttons but it didn't take a genius to see that nothing but static came back on any of the channels.

Bowens shook his head as he spoke, 'Nothing, sir. They have closed everything down.'

'Closed down as in powered the armour down or as in they are somehow jamming us?'

'I'm not sure they even know how to jam us, sir. So if you want an educated guess, I'd say the suits have been powered down, yes.'

'Cait, MacCready, I'm sorry but we are going to have to put this mission on hold, we don't know where those kids have been taken or what the status of our alliance is.'

MacCready offered up a suggestion, 'Nathan is it worth us going over to the airport? We could make a show of it at the market place or even the front gates to their base, if you like I could have a poke around the out buildings and wrecked planes to see if I can find anything out?'

'I image the Brotherhood chased the traders away without letting them take their goods, at least that's what it sounded like in Bergner's report. If that's the case we could have a riot on our hands if the Boston residents try to return to retrieve their property.'

'We'll take the Greyhounds and the APC's with three squads of men, I want one man in each vehicle armed with a missile launcher, and we'll have to go via the Chelsea Street Bridge. The journey shouldn't take more than forty minutes.'

Cait chipped in, 'At least you should get there before the traders.'

'Oh, and where will you be Colonel Kenny?' Nathan asked in mock surprise.

'Well I suppose I will have to baby sit yer man here, cos he is about as stealthy as a two headed Brahmin!' She beamed.

The journey would take the minutemen along Interstate 93 right into the centre of Boston, from there they would drive along Cross Street over Millers River and into Charlestown. The area around the old Tobin Memorial Bridge was still flooded but the vehicles should be able to pass on through Admirals Hill.

The route along the water front would be too exposed although that might be the shortest way, the convoy would head right into Park Street and then Central Avenue before crossing the Chelsea River via the Chelsea Street Bridge. From here it would be a straight route down the Massachusetts Turnpike, as far as the old Airport Station, that would put the Minutemen more or less right outside the main route into the old Airport.

The Traders who had been chased off their pitches had all met up at the American Legion playground in Eagle Hill on the edge of the Chelsea River. Annie Bergner was with the crowd, but she had stumbled during the eviction by the Brotherhood Knights and subsequently broken her Comms device. The mood of the traders was turning uglier by the minute.

Speaker after speaker stood on a makeshift stage, of boxes, denouncing the actions of the Brotherhood.

'General Sir, I think I have something on the radio.' Joe-sun Cho, the captain of the Infantry carrier Nathan was a passenger in, shouted over the drone of the diesel engine and all manner of other noise associated with driving a 15 ton vehicle over broken and rough terrain.

Nathan had to push his way forward to reach the Captain, 'what is it soldier?'

'I have a ping back from a friendly in the area, I reckon it must be your agent and from the location she is on the other side of the river to us.'

'Is there any way to contact her?' Nathan was holding on to the side frames around the hatch leading to where the crew sat, for dear life, such was the state of disrepair along Central Avenue.

'I'm afraid not Sir, she must have damaged her Comms set because all I am getting is the location signal.'

'Okay, let me know if anything changes.'

'Sir! She's moving, or at least the signal is.'

'Which way?'

'Back towards the Airport, sir.'

'What's our ETA Captain?'

'If she is on foot, and our passage is as clear as it has been so far, then we are effectively five minutes behind her arrival.'

'I think I now know why those Brotherhood boys think air travel is the way forward.'

'Why's that General?' Nathan had to hand it to the Captain, he did seem genuinely surprised by that remark.

'Captain you said our journey had been clear, I would hate to be your passenger when the going got tough.' Nathan scoffed jokingly.

Before the Captain could reply, his driver cut in, 'General Sir, I only passed my test four days ago!'

The six wheeled vehicle slued as it hit a large piece of solid rubble causing Nathan to bump his head.

The look on Nathan's face was one of wounded pride, the rest of the men burst into fits of sympathetic laughter.

Annie Bergner marched back across the partially flooded ground along Shelby Street, the traders were over fifty strong, and some had pipe weapons, others picked up objects from the sides of the road.

The Brotherhood had made a bridgehead out of the Boston Transit Airport Station building, they set up two gateways in and out of the main airport. The first gate was on the East Boston Expressway and the other, the one the angry mob now bore down upon, the Massachusetts Turnpike.

As the mob of traders advanced on the guard post, shouting their disgust and cat calling the Brotherhood, a lone trooper, Initiate Harry Whittle stepped out from the cover of his hut and held his laser rifle forward, but pointing upwards. 'Halt! And declare your business.' He barked, nervously.

The mob bayed and jeered and told the young lad that he should call for his superiors, Harry tapped the Comm link in his power armour suit and did just as he was told.

Staff Sergeant Nielsen arrived shortly after being summoned with a full platoon of knights.

'What the devil do you people think you are doing?' the Sergeant shouted, his voice was like a clap of thunder and all who cared to listen stood silently for a moment.

A young man then stepped forward from the crowd, trembling as he spoke. It was 18 year old Jeb Garrick. 'Earlier this day, your men chased us away from our trading stalls and refuse to allow us to take our goods away with us! What say you to that?'

Initiate Whittle stepped close to Garrick, incensed by his tone of voice, 'You will show some respect when talking to an officer of the Brotherhood, filth!'

While it was true that the young master like his comrades were indeed dirty, Garrick in particular took great offence at having this pointed out to him by someone who sounded every bit his junior. 'Filth, is it? Well that's hardly surprising since it took two platoons of your ape friends here to chase us off into that bog over there, us being mostly women, children and some old men and all.'

Whatever Sergeant Nielsen thought about saying was lost, as Initiate Whittle suddenly and without provocation thrust the butt of his laser rifle right into the face of the young protagonist, striking him so hard that Garrick lost his footing and fell crying in great pain to the ground.

Bart Broadacre immediately lepped forward to cover the stricken youth remonstrating vociferously with Whittle. Whittle raised his weapon pointing first to his left, then to his right, all the time threating to open fire if the crowd did not rescind. They did not, and within the blink of an eye the fifty strong mob had all but surrounded the young Knight in training. Sergeant Nielsen called for his platoon to spread out in a line with their backs to the wall of the barricades.

Antony Fox, a 19 year old trader in literature, now accosted Whittle, if this man lashed out at you first then he will answer to the Minutemen for his actions, and it was at this point that Annie Bergner joined the Frey. Some of the traders were lighting torches as the evening turned to night, the wind at this point seemed to stir from its relative calm sweeping liter up into the faces of all present, and the first drops of rain began to fall.

Initiate Whittle caught sight of the young women with blond hair and blazing blue eyes, and cleared his throat to speak words to her that might placate him from this situation, he certainly didn't want to hurt her but she stood right in front of him, his rifle pressing into her chest. He didn't want this. But they kept pushing and shoving and she was shouting loudly at him but her words were snatched away, he was feeling dizzy, claustrophobic, why didn't they just leave him alone? So that he and her might discuss this over some tea, and perhaps a bit of cake.

Thud

Christopher Attaman struck Whittle square on the helmet; T-45 armour was notoriously uncomfortable at the best of times but when people started to throw things that was going to hurt.

thud, thud, thud

Multiple projectiles began to reign down on the hapless trooper. Sergeant Nielsen, realizing that this situation was spiraling out of control ordered six of his troopers to reverse their weapons and in his words go fetch that stupid boy back here before they kill him, Corporal William Wyhams was instructed to lead the recovery party.

At this point Antony Fox had made his way forward from the crowd and only a couple of feet away from the Staff Sergeant, 'For god's sake man call off your men, if they fire this mob will riot!'

Sergeant Nielsen remained calm, stating that he was well aware of what might occur but that it would end far worse for the crowd as all of his men were in power armour and armed with laser rifles.

Corporal Wyhams reached Whittle who was now kneeling down on one leg, such was the ferocity of blows that had reigned down upon him. 'Form a semicircle around him, men.' Wyhams bellowed through his Head Comms. 'Use your rifle butts to push these people back, show them that we have no wish to open fire upon them.'

The roar of the Greyhounds engines was enough to put the fear of god into any man or women who was hearing such a thing for the first time, and so it broke the frenzy of the mob and they stood back. Heads turned towards the dull heavy growl of the five in coming vehicles.

Attempting to take advantage of the calm and quite from the crowd, Sergeant Nielsen shouted once more for them to disperse and return to their dwelling places.

Nathan told his minutemen to stay in their vehicles for the time being and he alone approached the crowd from their rear.

Seeing that the newcomers were not going to ride straight through the gates and mow the Brotherhood Knights down, the crowd once again began to heckle the troopers and some picked up more stones and debris to sling at them.

Corporal Wyhams had helped Whittle to his feet and was ordering his men to retreat in good order when a second wave of missiles were thrown at them, now the Knights were trying to bat the incoming objects away like this was some twisted sycophantic game of pitch and toss.

A portly man, Richard Palmer, now joined Antony Fox in remonstrating with Sergeant Nielsen, however he began to wave a cudgel at the Sergeant, not intending to add weight to his frustration but because he carelessly forgot that it was in his hand when he waved, as he thought, his right hand at the non-commissioned officer.

'Are you really going to fire on us if we refuse to leave without all of our stock, Officer?' Demanded the rotund man with the pinched face, which made every word he uttered more like a threat than a question.

'Let me assure you that my men have shown more restraint that even I could have wished for, but if your rabble insist on pelting my men with missiles I will order them to defend themselves, am I making myself clear?' Nielsen spoke now with a look on his face of grim determination.

Nathan had managed to push his way to the front of the once more jeering mob and stood before Nielsen. 'How nice to see you here as well Paladin Dewitt, Sir.' Suddenly butter wouldn't melt in his mouth as the Sergeant began to speak to Nathan.

'What happened Sergeant, why are all these folk here and all fired up?'

'We had to close the market early that's all, and they were escorted away, and then they came back all uppity like, sir.'

'What about all of their provisions and stuff?'

'No idea sir, perhaps if they come back in the morning and ask nicely we could sort something out, but when they are behaving like wild animals, well I have my orders, sir.'

At that moment the unthinkable happened.

Corporal Wyhams had just reached the safety of Brotherhood barricades and his men were moving in alongside those already in line when somebody from the crowed fired a shot that struck one of the Knights.

Staff Sergeant Nielsen raised his right arm placing the palm of his hand on Nathan's right shoulder, he intended to push the Paladin out of the way, not to save him from being hit but to get a better look at who just fired.

Now the shot that was fired was from a pipe gun, a homemade rifle which under Minutemen law could be no more than a .22 caliber round, it had struck the trooper as he turned around to face the crowd, it hit the lens cap on his helmet causing no damage what-so-ever, but the shock coupled with the noise the small bullet had made caused the trooper to go down like he had in fact been shot and mortally wounded.

A volley of Laser rifle fire hisses and fizzled through the rain drenched evening and body began to hit the ground like a bomb had gone off.

Nathan turned to the crowd with his arms outstretched bellowing at the top of his voice for them to cease and desist with their actions. Whirling around to face the Sergeant once more he pleaded with him to order his men to stand down. Sergeant Nielsen instead radioed for reinforcements, calling through a code red.

Nathan called for the Minutemen to alight their vehicles and to come and form a barrier between the Knights and the traders. The last Minuteman was in place as the rest of Nielsen's company arrived. The crowd now moved back and as they did the full horror of this evenings events began to take hold. Eleven men and women lay upon the ground, rain cut into their prostrate bodies driving the blood away almost immediately as it appeared at their sides.

After what seemed like an age but in reality was only seconds, silence again descended on all sides, apart from the sound of the rain hitting the hard cracked tarmac road surface. Of those hit by laser fire, three did not make a move or indeed utter another sound ever again, two more, both males, writhed in agony clutching at wounds that had seared through their flesh leaving holes the size of golf balls. A further six attempted to get to their feet but were unable to, either due to shock at being shot or the nature of their wounds.

Nathan climbed on to the top of one of the Greyhounds and hollowed at the crowd to quiet down, they had all pushed back away from the Brotherhood by now and were themselves seeking cover behind and around the five Minutemen vehicles. 'Please return to your places of residence and let me sort this out before anyone else gets hurt.'

'Why should we trust you? Aren't you one of them Brotherhood lot?' Shouted an anonymous voice from the crowd.

'Yes, it is true, I hold the rank of Paladin, but you all know me better than that. I am General of the Minutemen and we, the Minutemen, have not let you down once in the last five years, have we?'

The mood of the crowd began to soften on hearing Nathan speak. Perhaps the only ones who wouldn't listen were those who were out to cause mischief, and Nathan had already prepared his men to watch for those such ones.

After a short time had passed a small group of traders broke away from the rest and began to file away wearily north to find a bridge with which to cross the river and return to Boston. Then a second larger group followed suit, and then all but a handful had started their journey back across the river.

Nathan jumped down from the vehicle and proceeded towards the row of Knights who had not until now moved so much as a whisker, their weapons still raised menacingly, and all trained upon him. On his approach, Nathan had a nagging doubt about what exactly he was heading into. These Knights, Nathan noticed, held their posture differently to those of Elder Maxson's men, indeed he had spent the last six years rubbing shoulders with the Brotherhood and tonight's turnout held something of a foreboding about it.

'Lower those weapons! Do you not recognize a Paladin Knight when you see one?'

They did indeed know exactly who was approaching them, and they were scared. Nathan Dewitt had a reputation that proceeded him, and he was backed up by those five Stryker's with weapons that could easily tear them to pieces. However, it was Staff Sergeant Nielsen's voice they heard barking in their ears through their head Comms.

'Hold fast men, if he so much as looks like he has a weapon, open fire. That's an order!' Nielsen had his own agenda, and he was still cursing himself for not hitting Nathan when he fired directly at him only minutes before, if it weren't for that stupid man who had got in the way things would have been really looking up by now.

Nathan had the look about him of a man gone feral by the time he reached the first of the Knights whose weapons were trained on him. But he was in no mood for any more small talk either, having just climbed over the bodies of people he considered as being under his protection.

The first non-descript Knight who bore the brunt of Nathan's dark mood was one Private Gage Jones, and although in his armour he towered almost two feet above Nathan, it didn't stop the Vault dweller from grabbing hold of the Knight's laser and yanking it out of his hands. 'Now put your weapons away and go and tend to those wounded. NOW. God Damn it!'

Some of the Knights broke ranks and attended to the fallen while others stood their ground hesitantly. 'Fetch me someone of senior rank, Staff Sergeant.' Nathan was ready to draw his weapon and obliterate this insubordinate buffoon on the spot, such was the anger that swelled inside him.

'Sir, with all due respect you no longer have any jurisdiction here, either to order me about or even to ask to speak with a senior officer.'

Nathan's laser stuck fast under Nielsen's chin, so fast that none of the other Knights watching had any chance to react. 'Now if you make me ask once more you moron, I will microwave that thick head of yours, do I make myself clear?'

Nielsen was in no doubt that Nathan meant every word he spoke, but Nielsen had bigger friends behind him now, and so shrugged his shoulders like he didn't care one way or the other. He left it for the Corporal to contact Lieutenant Rhys.


	7. Chapter 7

CHAPTER SEVEN

Cait and MacCready alighted from their Greyhound as it turned off Chelsea Street and into Curtis Street. They were accompanied by three other minutemen, all five were dressed in black wet suits which included a full face mask complete with Comms links.

Their mission was to find a way into the old airport terminal building and find out just what Annie Bergner had witnessed, and also why the Brotherhood Knights had so forcible ejected those traders from their pitches.

The light was waning and the rain began to come down in heavier waves the nearer they got to the outer fence that surrounded the northern most edge of the Airport. This was an area comprising of many small office blocks with generous parking facilities attached.

The whole area before them was derelict and made for great cover, not that any of the team members had picked up any movement on their motion detectors.

Missions like this usually threw up a pack of wild dogs or worse, a raider gang scavenging for anything they could find to sell.

A brief meander through the displaced cars and vans and the five had arrived at water's edge.

There was a bay that cut into the north east side of the airport that had an access road that followed the line of the water but set back a few yards in land. This would be their route, their aim now was to get to Runway 15 without encountering any Mirelurks who might be nesting along the shore line. If there were, then it would mean risking firing their lasers at them and being spotted by the Brotherhood.

Thankfully that part was traversed without incident and those thirty minutes it had taken to get this far had afforded them even more cover as the rain lashed down and any last vestiges of the sun were lost behind the thick black storm clouds.

Looking across the open runway towards the terminal building, and despite all the broken and missing letters, it was possible still to pick out the words, Terminal E, and that three different airline companies had once operated flights from here. The passengers long gone and the planes with which they would have departed and arrived all now lay smashed and broken like so much discarded metal in a giant scrap yard.

MacCready signaled for the team to hold position, while he then scanned the horizon. Nothing! It appeared that whatever was going on around front, had pulled any or all of the guards off this entire side of the airport, MacCready had deduced. He signaled for them to move slowly across to the outside of the terminal building, one at a time.

This maneuver took a further ten minutes to accomplish and again it went without hitch.

Another scan, this time of the building's interior by way of a broken window, revealed that not a living soul was abroad within one hundred meters, and that meant from their position to the back of the building. It was empty.

MacCready now had a choice to make, to split the team up. Cait was to take two men and work her way round the outside of this building, and over to the next smaller building to their right.

It looked on the map, in fact like a small building with two other pertuding buildings that were shaped like the letter T. MacCready and his man would go left and work their way towards the centre of the Airport, where the map showed a large hotel complex surrounded by a ring road.

It wasn't long before Macready's, heads up display, was lighting up like a fourth of July parade. 'Bingo!' whispered MacCready.

The hotel was giving off multiply heat signatures on every level from the lobby to the very top floor. MacCready was trying to make sense of what he was seeing when his man pointed out that most of the heat signatures were just that. MacCready was deep in thought and caught out by what it was his companion was trying to say.

'Look Colonel, a small group of figures have weapons, see at their sides, but look into the rooms, none of these figures have any kind of weapon and there signatures are different.'

'Yes, I see like the ones outside the rooms are in power armour but the others aren't!'

They both watched as the figures on the top floors grouped together at first then split apart, the ones in armour and with weapons stayed outside the rooms. The ones without armour or weapons were pushed into the rooms. It looked to all intense and purpose that those in the rooms were being locked inside, so they were prisoners then?

They had watched this same sequence of events take place many times, before they became aware that they were no longer alone.

MacCready slipped the safety off his laser rifle then sighted with relief, it was Cait and the two other team members, they had come full circle and caught up.

In hushed tones MacCready filled the new arrivals in with what he had seen.

Cait asked if they should try to get closer but her whispers were eradicated by the cackle of small arms fire followed by the almost silent whoosh of laser rifles.

MacCready thought that they had all the Intel they could get and that they should rendezvous back with Nathan and the rest of the Minutemen.

The five turned slightly to their right, now they were facing the direction that the shooting was coming from, it would be more expedient if they could just make their way across the open airplane parking bays and back to the Massachusetts Turnpike were they knew the Stryker's would be parked. Once more they took the time to survey the area ahead and on seeing no more lifeforms than perhaps small insects, they made their move.

Despite the rain they arrived at the vehicles in less than half the time it had taken for them to get to the Hotel complex in the first place.

They fell into the interior of the vehicles just to get some respite from the rain, and it was there that they learned of all of the evening's events. Cait asked where Nathan was and a minuteman pointed outside towards the front gates of the Airport, 'He's over there Ma'am.'

'What's he up to? Does anyone know?' Cait asked, if she was concerned she didn't let it show, but MacCready gently reached out to her, touching her arm, 'That old warhorse will be just fine, he'll be swapping stories with his tin plated mates, that's all.'

Knight Lieutenant Rhys marched down toward the main gates along with Proctor Peter Wyatt, they were deep in conversation as they walked side by side. Nathan watched them approach but was listening to MacCreadys report coming through via his headset. It did cross his mind that it was Rhys and not Danse who approached though.

Rhys didn't speak nor did he even acknowledge Nathan, all of the pleasantries were left to Wyatt, and all he was giving away right know was that the Brotherhood of course regretted the incident that had taken place. Nathan pressed for an official investigation which was met by a frosty reception, until Nathan reminded the Proctor that the crowd would return the following day and that the airport covered a large area that would be hard to police.

'So what exactly are you proposing Nathan?' Proctor Wyatt asked somewhat intrigued.

'A full investigation of course!' Nathan was genuinely surprised that he even had to ask.

'And if that wasn't forth coming?'

'Then the Brotherhood had better all return to the Prydwen and fly away because those settlers were organized, armed and had the advantage of greater numbers, with or without power armour.' Nathan was incredulous that this Proctor didn't see that from the start.

'I think, when you put it like that Nathan, perhaps we had better put on a show.'

That last remark made Nathan wonder just who this Proctor was, he didn't seem to think that hundreds of angry setters armed to the teeth might even pose a threat. It was quite astonishing.

'Nathan, am I correct in thinking that you are both a Paladin Knight and also General of the Minutemen?'

'Yes, but I don't see why that should matter at this moment.'

'Perhaps it does, perhaps not, but you might find in the coming days that you will have to pick a side.'

'Proctor all you need to know is that I consider Elder Maxson to be a personal friend and that while he held command here there would be no conflict of interest.' Nathan was fishing for information, whether the Proctor realised that of not he didn't add anything of relevance to what Nathan had just said.

'So you want an official inquiry? What if these settlers don't like the board's findings?'

'The board? No I think you misunderstand me Proctor, I would think nothing less than a judicial inquiry with full powers to administer any punishment to the guilty.'

'A court of law? And where would this court hold its sessions? Here on the airport or over in Boston?'

'Faneuil Hall, in Boston.' That statement made even Rhys look at him like he was insane.

'Nathan, if I am able to agree that what guarantees would my men have that the trial would be unbiased?'

'We have a system in place where by one councilor from each of the thirty two settlements puts his name forward to both the prosecution and the defense teams and between them they whittle those thirty two down to twelve.'

'They serve as the jury, yes?'

Rhys could barely believe his ears and became more agitated as the conversation proceeded.

'Nathan do I have your solemn promise that if I agree to these terms that the trail will be fair and just, and that while the trial takes place these men will be safe from any misfortune, say like a lynch mob?'

'Two more matters. First and if you agree, then you will have my word and the protection of the Minutemen.'

'Only two more? What are these two more?'

'Firstly that you give all of the traders access to their goods that are on the market here behind us, and secondly that you fly the men to Cambridge Police Headquarters where they are to be held for the duration of the hearing.'

'Alright, but what of the people who started all of this? Do they also stand trial or do they just melt off into the background?'

'No, they too will stand trial, but you will have to supply me with pictures from your troopers' headcams so that I can identify them myself.'

Proctor Wyatt held out his hand towards Nathan, then we will proceed with all of this on the morning after the settlers collect their belongings. I trust you will let your people know and I will transport the platoon over to the Police station.'

Proctor Wyatt turned after saying, 'Good evening.' And began walking back towards the main airport building, Rhys who was incensed turned and walked with him.

'You don't approve, Lieutenant?' Proctor would have to be blind not to see the filthy mood his subordinate was now in.

'Permission to speak freely sir!' Rhys barked stoically.

The Proctor raised his hand to confirm it was alright for Rhys to do so.

'Sir, this man is as wily as a coyote and I wouldn't trust him as far as I could throw him!'

'My dear fellow, really? I mean, honestly?'

'Yes sir, honestly.'

'Let me tell you a bit about our General, he is a man of honour, a fool yes. But a good fool, an honest hearted fool even, you might say. No he will make sure this court he has planned goes exactly as he sees it in his mind, of that I am confident. So we need to make sure that our case is water tight, those traders started all of this and our men were merely defending themselves in the face of an angry mob.'

'Sir, if you stand eight Knights and Corporal Wyhams in power armour in a witness box they will be found guilty. For no other reason than they are in armour and the jury will know that those traders could not have injured them, unless they shot them with missile launchers!'

'My dear Rhys you understand perfectly well, as do I, so we too must be cunning.'

'We do?'

'Yes, the men will not be in power armour when they stand trial, they will be in their fatigues, ill-fitting fatigues by the way, as they are only boys, these clothes will hang off them giving them a look of being vulnerable boys.'

'…and they were provoked, outnumbered, scared.' Rhys was finally on the same page.

'It is Elder Hartley's wisdom that will have these inbred settlers eating out of his hand, have no fear we will play the good General's game and we will win!'

Nathan had stayed the night parked near the Chelsea Street bridge awaiting the return of the settlers and traders, and come they did, in greater numbers than the night before, and armed with weapons that Nathan knew were of an illegal caliber. He interceded.

'Good people of the Commonwealth, hear me now when I say that this matter will not be helped by a show of force today!'

'So what do you propose Minuteman?' a voice from the crowd bellowed.

'I have secured an agreement with the Brotherhood. In a few minutes I expect to see several verti-birds flying over our position.'

'Oh and what will they do? Drop bombs on us?' a chorus of both jeers and laughter rang out.

Nathan held out his hands to plead for silence. 'They will be transporting six Knights and their Corporal over to the police headquarters in Cambridge, there they will be held until we can convene a public trial.'

The jeering flared up once more. 'Hang them all.' Another voice, 'Shoot 'em.'

Once more Nathan begged form calm. 'Surely we have not fought, you and I, side by side these last six years to form lynch mobs now?'

'What do you propose then General? Should we not ask our dear friend and Brother Christopher Attaman?'

'You people know as well as I do he lost his life, but now is not the time to spill more blood, first you get your goods returned, and then we call for a council of settlement leaders.'

The jeering finally turned to cheering and Nathan was able to breathe, finally.

More than a week had passed by since the traders had their property returned and compensation for loss of sales, in that time the Brotherhood had honored everything that Nathan had requested. Proctor Wyatt had come in person to represent the brotherhood and to watch over the proceedings, he had spoken at length with several of the people who were present on the evening of the second Boston massacre (as the newspapers were calling it) and he had handed over images of the people who had begun throwing stones and lumps of wood at the Knights before the shooting started.

Nathan was able to arrest four perpetrators and they all were to stand trial after the end of these proceedings.

The newspapers were showing coloured mock ups of the Second Boston massacre all through the month of March along with vivid eye witness accounts from people who purported to have been present, a great wave of Commonwealth patriotism also swept through the thirty two settlements. Anything that could have been brewed, cooked or carved out of wood, was made to commemorate this historic occasion. The Brotherhood were painted as the big bad wolf who wanted to enslave the Commonwealth under the yoke of imperialism and those who lost their lives were made into revolutionary heroes who fought for truth and justice and the right of the common man.

Nathan for his part kept as low a profile as possible, at one point the newspaper ran a series of articles on who the people thought should be the Judge in this case, and of course the over whelming majority of readers called for him, Nathan was not interested in the slightest and in fact found the whole circus that was being whipped up distasteful to say the least.

On the morning of March 27th Faneuil Hall began to fill up with Jury members drawn from the leaders of the thirty two settlements, the presiding judge, Marisa Mathews, who was Director of the New Boston Library and also president of the Ladies backgammon club, and all of the clerks of court and other official peoples. Once they were all seated and hush befell the Grand Hall the main doors were throw open to allow the press and public alike to enter, there were also a handful of Minutemen on duty to keep the peace.

After Judge Mathews had given a short speech she called for both the prosecution team and the defense team were called next. Once they were seated the Judge banged her gravel down and asked for the first of the Brotherhood Knights to be brought up from the cells.

The first knight, right to the last were as planned, dressed in ill-fitting jump suits, clean shaven, and looking every bit like innocent young choir boys, the oldest was in fact the Corporal who was twenty one. Witness after witness gave their testimony, statements, arguments and evidence, both admissible and inadmissible. All of the time the boys of the Brotherhood hung their heads low, their faces were a picture of shame and sorrow, just as they had been coached to be.

Nathan was stood outside the Hall with Cait, he was leaning against the cold stone block exterior his mind wondering off thousands of miles away, or was that another world away, or just another time altogether, it didn't matter to Nate, he just didn't want to be here, now, any longer.

Cait was standing rather awkwardly, her left leg across her right, she watched Nathan like a hawk, and she knew he was thinking, he had those deep furrows across his brow every time he got like this. It was hard for her, she had only ever known men who wanted to take everything they could from her, Nate wasn't like them, he wasn't like anyone she had ever met.

'A bottle cap for your thoughts, lover?' she said in the most alluring way she knew how.

Nate didn't even acknowledge he had heard her.

'Ah? Am I just standing here talking to myself, freezing my butt off?'

No reply.

Gaud, it must be bad Cait thought to herself.

Now more than ever she wanted to say something witty, alas she could not. Her mood was in danger of becoming like his, she cared so much for him that what hurt him, hurt her ten times more, but this was something else, it wasn't pain that was etched on his face it was something else, perhaps he was planning something, something big and spectacular?

Well if Nathan had taught her anything it was that love conquered all, so that was it!

Cait untwined her legs and stepped forward towards Nathan. First her right arm pushed gently under his left arm forcing it to leave the side of his body, he didn't move, not a flicker. Then Cait explored round his lower back until the flat of her hand had found its perch, then her left hand did exactly the same until it was just a few centimeters above her right hand.

'Well this is certainly one maneuver they don't teach in basic training.' Cait said quietly into Nate's left ear.

Nathan did not register so much as a twitch and that made Cait very frustrated. 'Hmm, playing hard to get are we?' she enquired in a sultry low voice.

Still nothing!

She bit his ear, lightly at first then more aggressively when even that didn't work.

Slowly, surly Nate dropped his gaze and his eyes met hers. Cait longed for those moist lips of his against hers, but he was still struggling with something, and she could tell that he was resisting this moment as surely as if he were in a battle for his life.

The floodgates were flung wide open!

'It's all just for show.' Nathan gripped Cait either side of her waist, any other time and she would have seen this as a precursor to something more warm and tender but not right now. There was something about his hands, a steely grip, she fidgeted slightly, uncomfortable suddenly at his touch, and his hands became like giant vice's gripping her like he would lift her up and chuck her to one side. Cait was scared. 'Nate, sweetheart, what is it, what is making feel this way.'

'All of this!'

Cait was dumbfounded by the sharpness in his voice.

'The trial, the people, the Brotherhood the whole damn lot of them.'

'Why? What about the trail?' Cait asked innocently in surprise.

'It is a fix, a done deal, those Knights will get away with it, already the dead are buried and forgotten and life goes on, all it really is, is about making money, and taking power.'

'Nathan you are scaring me now, how, how do you know the trial is a fix? It has only been running for a week and neither of us have attended a single day inside, we instead stand out here staring into space and freezing to death.'

'Trust me, I read the newspaper, look how the byline has changed, first there was a public outcry over the deaths. Then the martyrs burial and a whip round for a tawdry marker of some kind, now look, these dear sweet, butter wouldn't melt in their mouths, young boys. Six weeks basic training and shoehorned into power armour and made to face an angry mob throwing missiles.'

Cait tried to speak, but no words would form, only tears in the corners of her eyes for the pain her man was suffering.

'…and where the heck is Maxson or Danse for that matter, why did I only see Rhys at the base, eh?'

'I don't know Nate, you know MacCready and I tried to find out.'

Nathan didn't hear a word that Cait said, he had that glazed look again, and he was in a dark place deep inside once more.

Cait leaned into his body, her chest against his, her left ear over his heart, soothed by its gentle beating, tears streaming down her cheeks.

Nates last words, uttered were that History was just repeating itself and nobody was listening, nobody would stand up to it and break the cycle.

The trial lasted for months and in between a fifth person died, from his injuries, and was buried with the other four. Where a headstone had been was now a lavish statue cast from bronze, commemorating the fallen, but in the newspaper there was only a footnote at the side of the columns of written word about the trial.

The market had been restored over at Boston Airport and still there was no sign of either Elder Maxson, Danse, or any of his command other than Rhys.

Natalie's feet hadn't had time to touch the ground, as Editor-in-Chief of the newspaper, she was expected in court every day and every night she worked with the reporters to set out the story ready for the first print runs a little after midnight each night.

Then as suddenly as it had all flared up, the furor was over and the circus was packing away. The bunting and the ticker tape, the Champagne and the celebration wine was now just hundreds of empty bottles littering the streets, six of the soldiers were acquitted and two were found guilty of manslaughter.

The evidence that the Brotherhood had provided from head cam footage and from the helmet Comms had been accepted as that which had actually happened, the troopers who discharged their weapons had done so without orders from either the Staff Sergeant or the Corporal. However, due to their age, lack of any real training and the fact that they had felt threatened by the size and nature of the mob railed against them, led to those two being convicted on reduced sentences and effectively being slapped on the wrists and told to behave themselves in the future.

Nathan had been right all along, and Cait held Natalie's newspaper up in the air in despair and disbelief. Now they were being made out to be the heroes and all of Boston rejoiced, oh the leadership of the Brotherhood was vilified but they never stepped one foot off the base nor was it thought into the daylight for fear of reprisals.

'Look at their sweet innocent little faces Cait,' said with total disgust.

Nathan had no wish to look and so he did not take but a blind bit of notice, barely was he able to contain his anger.

'They are no older than those kids we tried to rescue,' Cait continued talking, but it was only to herself.

Nathan suddenly and without prompt kissed Cait squeezed her hips and pushed her away, gently but very definitely before striding off on his own looking like a man possessed.

'Perhaps I'll just stay here and count the pigeon's shall I? Cait said to nobody in particular as by the time the last word had rolled off her lips Nathan was already away down South market Street, talking to someone via his radio.

It was twenty minutes past one in the afternoon when the Greyhound rolled up outside the main entrance to the Airport and stopped just short of one of the guard posts.

The Knight, wearing a set of dull gun metal power armour, jumped in surprise, he wasn't expecting any visitors, least of all any who's armoured vehicle looked like it was not intending to stop until it had run him trough.

Nathan leaped out of the rear of the Vehicle, he was dressed only in his blue vault suit and light combat armour, the type that was shorter and smaller than the rest, and was usually only worn when one was not expecting a fight, not that the Guard knew anything about the Minutemen protocols.

Nathan barged his way past the guard, who wandered if he should shoot Nathan or perhaps just let him walk on by, he did neither, instead he called through to control and said that Nathan was unarmed but looked in no mood for idyll conversation either.

Knight Lieutenant Rhys was then dispatched from the terminal 'A' building to escort Nathan inside, Rhys had removed his helmet so that he would be recognized, but retained the rest of his T-60 armour.

'Just a minute vault Dweller, you can't just stroll in here anymore like you own the place, God damn! Just who do you think you are?'

'To hell with you and your orders Rhys, either shoot me or get the heck out of my way!'

'Don't tempt me, I have been ordered to bring you in.'

'I want an audience with whoever is pulling the strings round here, c'os it sure as heck isn't Arthur Maxson anymore!'

'You always did seem to be one step ahead Vault Dweller.' Rhys had nothing but contempt for Nathan, he blamed him for everything that had happened, especially concerning Maxson and Danse.

Nathan was guided over to the former Terminal 'A' building, no more the wide open light space that he remembered. Entering the large cracked glass doors was like walking through the gates of hell, it was a dark, damp and smelled like an open sewer. Everywhere he looked waste was piled up high, the refuse of several generations covered in a blanket of dust. Everywhere were skeletons they numbered in the hundreds, this building, Nathan thought must have acted like a modernist Cathedral to all these people to flock too before the bombs fell, somewhere to congregate together in hope, but where only the Icey fingers of death lay in wait, still refusing to open its tight grip on the fallen.

The two men came to a stop before a static escalator that ascended to the first floor. Rhys pointed for Nathan to go up, alone.

As he clambered up the steels steps, the echo of which rang round the inside of the building like a solitary church bell calling the faith to pray, Nathan looked up noticing that there was a figure waiting for him at the top.

With an outstretched hand the figure, dressed in the uniform of a Proctor, bid Nathan a welcome. Nathan ignored the hand and stood eye to eye with this stranger before speaking.

'It may have escaped your attention, Proctor, but I am not here for afternoon tea, now kindly show me to whom it is that I have to speak to, and then I will be on my way.'

'Well I must say you are every bit as charming and well-mannered as I was informed you would be.'

'If you wanted for us to exchange pleasantries then you would have instructed your men to address me by my rank, and not with such contempt, I am not stupid, that is all!'

'Ah, forgive the insolence of my men, I fear they bare a grudge against you for all of the things that have happened recently, let me introduce myself properly. I am Senior Proctor Eugene Nash, from the West Coast Chapter of the Brotherhood.'

'Where is Elder Maxson?' Nathan asked curtly.

'Maxson and his people are being held as I image you already know, in the Hotel across the way.'

'Held? On what charge?'

'Does it matter, they have been removed from spreading their brand of poison any longer.'

Nash bore no malice in his voice and only the briefest hint of regret.

'You mean helping the people of the Commonwealth get a foot up on the ladder?'

'From repeating the mistakes of the past Nathan, surely even you must agree with me on that issue, or perhaps you would give them the ability to destroy what's left of the world?'

'You either don't know, or you choose to forget, that I am from that world of which you speak, and let me tell you and whoever else is listening, you might all live like kings, but you have built your castle on a dung heap all the same.'

'Granted some of what you say is the truth, but surely you agree in order to rebuild we have to start somewhere, Yes?'

'Agreed, but you have started at the top and made a damn fine place for yourselves while everyone else still suffers.'

'Oh and what? You would have us all start equally at the bottom? Living waist high in our own excrement, is that your wonderful vision?'

'Whatever! I did not come here to talk politics or exchange ideals with you, so let the real king put on his crown and come out from the shadows.'

The door to an office opened just beyond where the two men stood, a Scribe held it open while a voice from within invited them to enter.

There he stood in all his magnificence, Elder Howard Hartley of the High Council of the Brotherhood of Steel. Just as Rhys was, the Elder was too, dressed in his finest gilded gold and silver power armour, less his helmet, and all draped in the finest of silks. The personification of the Teutonic Knights of old Nathan thought.

'Finally, you already know who I am, so let's cut the crap and get down to the real reason I am here, shall we Hartley?'

Elder Hartley felt a slither of admiration for this Vault Dweller, and could immediately see exactly why so many of his kin were willing to risk their lives for this man.

'Hartley waved his right hand in the air somewhat dismissively, 'let's get straight to it then, why are you here? What are is it that you hope to achieve?'

'Release Maxson and all those who remain loyal to him into my care immediately!'

'In heavens name why would I want to do such a thing?' Hartley fained surprise to Nathan, but felt a tingling sensation as he spoke. Hartley knew he was going to enjoy this dance and wished to savor it for as long as he could.

'If I were able to just release them all, what are you offering in return?'

'The Airport.' Nathan snapped back.

'This place? Look around you man, I have this place already.'

'You are here because I allow you to be here, that is all.' Nathan growled.

'I would never have taken you to be that foolish, how in the name of creation are we here only because you allow it?'

'To be perfectly honest, I should be thanking you really.'

'Thanking me for what exactly.' Hartley answered cautiously.

'The thirty two settlements that make up the Commonwealth were up until a month ago exactly that, thirty two separate individual settlements, who only co-operated with each other either when it suited them to do so, or if they were rewarded handsomely.'

'…And along came the big bad brotherhood and they came running together quivering like frightened children begging you to help them, I suppose?' Hartley spat those words out like they were something distasteful that he had eaten.

Nathan shrugged his shoulders, 'Almost exactly correct, until the night of the massacre they were very much like squabbling children, and now they are of one voice, the Commonwealth. They want a single government, someone to protect them, but more important than these two, they want to rise above the filth that they find themselves in.'

'So I suppose that is where Nathan Dewitt comes riding in on his gleaming white horse to deliver them all from the Brotherhood is it?'

'No, not quite.'

'Then tell me do, please the stench of this is beginning to make me want to balk!'

'I want to make Elder Maxson the Governor of the Commonwealth.'

Hartley's mouth dropped open but no words could find their way out of his mouth.

'First though you must discharge him and his men from the Brotherhood, honorably or otherwise it's all the same to me, but you will have to answer to your paymasters not I.'

'Why, what possible motive can you have Nathan?

'Hartley you are still looking at the smaller picture, the bigger picture is the one that will not only keep the peace, because heaven forbid we have another California on our hands, but it will appease the High Council.'

Hartley was still disseminating the information and unable to comment as well.

'Operation Possum, that is ultimately what you are giving your masters, don't you see, Maxson and the Brotherhood firmly embedded in the Commonwealth, this way you all get what you want.'

'I just don't understand you, Nathan, what do you get out of all of this, what is it you want so badly that you are willing even to make this offer?'

'Peace, Hartley, that's what I get, and that's what I have always wanted, with everyone, regardless of colour or creed.'

'So you don't want to be the new Governor, so he makes you his General instead?'

'No not even that, I get to ride off into the sunset with my lady and son and start a farm somewhere, far, far away from all of this.'

'I am sorry, I just don't believe you!' Hartley's mind was reeling from each revelation that he heard, 'So why didn't you just do that anyway?'

'You know why, because little men with over inflated egos would never leave me along, I would never be free, and a life always looking over my shoulder is nothing like the one I want.'

'So If Maxson was in charge you would get that freedom you think.'

'Yes, why not?'

'Also if I understand your proposal properly, the Brotherhood stays here, I mean Boston Airport is ours to do with as we wish?'

'Yes, I can honestly say that in six years of trying all I ever managed to plant on this ground was a single fresh water pump, so you are most welcome to it, everything this side of Interstate 90.'

'What about the market, it would remain? It is profitable for you and good for morale on my side.'

'That would ultimately be up to the people of Boston, but I see no reason why they would stop trading.'

'Now if I recall I had a conversation with Maxson about the flooded areas, Eagle Hill, East Boston and Jefferies Point, what will become of them, he mentioned you wanted to reclaim them from the bay.'

'That is under consideration, yes. I'm not sure if we have the capability to ever achieve such a thing, in my life time anyway, but it's out there, again it could be very beneficial to any future integration between the Commonwealth and the Brotherhood.'

'My god, Nathan, we should have made a place on the High Council for you, what you say, and I am not ruling any of it out, is brilliant!'

'Well I'm glad you seem to think so, like I said I just want peace.'

'Okay, so what is the alternative? The one where I say something like, go to hell?'

Hartley's smile was like that of a crocodile about to feast on its unsuspecting prey.

Nathan dropped all the passion from his voice for which he had just spoken and instead became almost monotone. 'The trial of your men is over, all but two exonerated, maybe I let slip it was fixed, the settlers have their martyrs and I whip them up into a frenzy and we storm the Airport.'

'You really believe you of all people could pull this off?'

'I have nearly one seven hundred trained men and several times that many militia, not to mention all of the tanks, APC's, Mechanized infantry, Howitzers, the list is really endless.'

'My, my, are your true colours starting to show through, Nathan?'

'You seem to have a production line of very young boys and girls. They get six weeks basic training, children dressed in the uniforms of men, but you let your little secret out by exposing them so publicly.'

'I am quite sure I have no idea what you are talking about!' Hartley had the air of a king about him but the confidence of a poker player whose bluff has now been called.

'Those toy soldiers are all you have Elder, and your numbers are still quite low, so I am confident that the Minutemen will crush them, you included, if that is how you want to play this.'

'Do you not think that my men have the advantage of Power Armour?'

'Your children are not trained to use them properly, I mean the T-60 suits you took from Maxson and his men, where as I have a whole Vault full of power armour, and my men ARE trained properly.'

'You are very sure of yourself Nathan and I commend you for the accuracy of your information, except the numbers, I have far bigger resources at my disposal than you actually know about.'

'If my Intel is correct, and it has stacked up so far, I can only wonder where you have obtained these soldiers from, perhaps you are growing them in test tubes?'

Hartley gave the thinnest of smiles. Touché, thought Nathan, with a self-satisfied smile all of his own.

'I will of course have to concur with the other members of the High Council, and the President, all of which will take time, shall we meet again in a couple of days, say Wednesday the 1st of March?'

'Alright, and what will happen to Maxson and his people in the meantime?'

'Well I can just let them go, but I will see that they get some more freedom within the Hotel complex, does that meet with your approval?'

'For a couple more days, yes.'

'Excellent I had better let you go, as it is twenty past midnight and we both have places to be, people to see, so I will bid you farewell until Wednesday.'

Nathan nodded, turned on his heels and made for the door.

On the other side Rhys was waiting to escort him back to his vehicle, while the Senior Proctor, Nash, waited until Nathan had left the terminal building before he entered the room to speak with Hartley.


	8. Chapter 8

CHAPTER EIGHT

The Verti bird transporting Elder Hartley approached the old helipad on the roof of Providence Plaza, it was highlighted by a large letter 'H' contained inside a circle. Already there was a small number of military looking figures huddled together below await Hartley's arrival. The Elder had not dared to send word ahead of him via his own channels at Boston Airport incase those messages were intercepted, instead he had contacted the High Council and used a code word that intimated that they should contact the Gunner base in providence to alert them of his impending arrival.

The main Gunner base was located in Vault 41 which its self was constructed beneath the former Rhode Island State House. Vault 41 was an immense top secret military base of operations some two hundred years ago, since the last Great War however the great grandchildren of those who survived, had set about keeping alive a tradition of the military wing of the government of the United States of America. Where they excelled in all things military including chain of command, the right to take up arms, and many other ideas that suited their creed, they had little or no knowledge of the old constitution, more importantly things like free speech, everyone is born equal and so on, and so forth.

Like so many regimes who had gone before them the soon came to realise basic truth's like, you can have all the military hardware in the world but if you run out of gas your regime will ultimately fail, and so it was that they made contact with other like-minded organizations.

The Brotherhood of Steel was a perfect fit, they had all the things the Gunner's lacked and none of the things the gunners had in abundance, their most important need being a severe shortage of man power.

It was however the emergence of the one calling himself the President who was really able to pull the other two powers together, and his claim to the title was compelling, backed up by the fact that he was locked in an underground facility of his own, along with three quarters of the American gold reserve only aided his cause.

The president whose name like everything else about him, apart from his voice, via a Comms links, and of course his gold unless it was used to purchase, remained hidden away. However both the Brotherhood and the Gunners from their own records proved at least to themselves that he was were he said he was, even if they couldn't prove who he was.

…and money talks, in any language.

Elder Hartley stepped out of the Verti-bird and was immediately embraced by the commander-in-chief of the Gunners, one very particular, Clayton Carey the third. A rather squat rotund man, who seemed only to be able to speak with an equally fat San Francisco Sunlight cigar attached to the right corner of his mouth.

'It's great to have you back so soon Hartley, were those boys I sent you just great or what?' It was hard not to get completely carried away by Carey's genial nature.

'That is why I have returned so soon.' Hartley spoke in hushed tones.

'Oh, there not a problem is there? Remember we can't give refunds if you don't return the bodies at least!'

Now, that wasn't funny. Hartley didn't much think or care for the lives of his soldiers, they were after all nothing more than flesh and bone automatons, but even he thought that attempt at humor was in bad taste.

'The soldiers you sent me were mostly all killed in battle, the others who I were able to take into the Brotherhood Knight program are functioning quite well, in fact it is more from that same batch, if you have them, that I wish to purchase.'

'Oh yes, they were a particle good year, perhaps those others were a year or two too young, don't you think.'

'Well they served their purpose, but yes their age and the high dose of stimulants and growth pills you had them on was counterproductive.'

'So how many of the 2273 crop would you like?' Carey spoke like he was talking about fine wine and not like it was the lives of human beings.

'I need a full platoon, but I need them dressed as Minutemen.'

'Minutemen? What vault suit and polymer combat armour Minutemen?

'Precisely!'

'What's the mission or is it a need to know only?' the Commander tapped the side of his nose and winked.

Hartley could quite happily hurled right there and then, he hated this potbellied pig, his manner, and his disgusting cigar smoke, what he did have to admire though was his incredible ability to mass produce soldiers, and he had need of that right now. That made everything else just about bearable.

'I will have them assembled in no time, Elder, now do your require anything else?'

'There is one thing I would like to ask, yes.' Hartley narrowed his eyes suspiciously as he looked directly into the Commanders eyes. 'Do you know anything about those vehicles that the Minutemen are driving around in?'

'Yeah, sure, they are standard M1126 Stryker Infantry Carrier Vehicles, hell I got a god-darned underground hanger full of them, all types!'

'You have?' Hartley asked in surprise.

'We got every variant, some fire missiles, other have a single turret mounted cannon on top, then you have just machine guns, or machine guns and a 105mm gun, you name it, we got it.'

'Are they for sale too?'

'I couldn't give them away Hartley, lease I could but you couldn't drive them away.'

'I'm afraid you have me at a disadvantage Commander.'

'They, we that is, don't have a spare drop of diesel to put in them, not even to teach the recruits how to drive them, not a drop.'

'Ah, that would explain why the Vault dweller has taken over all of the Red Rocket Service Stations, and guards them like they house the President.'

'Yeah, I know what you mean, unfortunately all our fuel went up during the war, now we have to ration it just to keep the lights on.'

'What a pity.' Exclaimed the Elder bitterly, 'What a pity.'

The Commander looked thoughtfully at the Elder, 'Now, back to business eh?'

'Yes of course we are both very busy, so what will it be, this time?'

'Hey, for you my friend, shall we agree on $15,500 a piece?'

'$465,000? Do you want it up front and in gold as usual?'

'That would be most agreeable Elder Hartley, most agreeable indeed!'

'Two days from now I am holding a conference with the Vault Dweller at Boston Airport, now look at this map I have here, you see this place?' Hartley stabbed his forefinger down on a place on the map called 'Sanctuary'.

'There is a shipment of food, drink and other things destined for the Super-mutant colony coming through here at roughly the same time, can your boys take that convoy out, and replace the Minutemen stationed there?'

'Jeez, Elder if I didn't know better. I'd have to ask if it's a war you are trying to start.'

'Exactly, my good man, but I want something else too, I want to ruin Nathan Dewitt and his precious minutemen, once and for all.'

'I trust that you have a man of your own who will lead this platoon, if so where will you have these new recruits meet with him?'

'Let us look at the map once more.' Elder Hartley traced his finger across the map from Providence along a main road once called 'the 146'. His deft finger stopped at a place called Hope Cemetery that is situated south of the old city of Worcester. 'Here, this is where my man will be waiting. Now how do you propose to transport them?'

'We have horse drawn wagons.'

'Excellent, then they should arrive in plenty of time.' Hartley allowed himself a smile of satisfaction, which the Commander also duplicated after a sigh of relief.

'Elder, I anticipate that the convoy should take a little over four hours, give or take as they will be travelling through an area infested by Radscorpions.'

'Commander it has been a pleasure doing business with you, as always. I will have your gold unloaded from my Verti-Bird and then I will be off, I will need to brief my man on the rest of the plan.'

Staff Sergeant Nielsen was given a field promotion for the mission ahead, to that of Lieutenant. However, he was to dress as were the men he was meeting in Minutemen colours.

From the Hope Cemetery onwards the men were to act as a Minuteman unit, they had forged papers that would show that they were a relief platoon, and those papers would stand up to scrutiny.

This was because Elder Hartley had a man in his pay who worked at the Minuteman Headquarters, at the new Boston Police Department building, who issued these types of papers every day of the week.

The first part of their journey would take them as far as a ruined township called Leominster, the journey was through mostly open countryside and unhindered took two hours. At Leominster they were able to stop and stretch their weary legs, after sitting so long in a wooden cart being pulled over broken road surfaces by horses, one was very much in need of something else.

A small fire was constructed and hot food and drinks served, then after another hour of rest, the platoon was on its way once more. From Leominster they would travel for a quarter of an hour along Merriam Avenue, until it interchanged with Highway '2'. The platoon turned left on Highway '2' driving along that which in turn became interstate '202' and after three hours they arrived at their destination.

The former Orange Municipal Airport today served as a small garrison outpost for the Minutemen, as well as the main trading post for the Commonwealth Super-Mutant Agency. The Agency was staffed by an Ambassador to the Super-Mutants, who was chosen up until now by Nathan Dewitt himself, along with five agents who under took all manner of administrative duties for the Ambassador.

The maximum strength of the Minuteman garrison was thirty men and women of all ranks. As Nielsen and his men ambled along East River Street on the back of their carts they had noticed several small builds that looked like accommodation huts for settlers, these would have comprised of people like, farmers, a brewer, an armorer, a blacksmith and others of that ilk. None had lights on and up until now the Lieutenant had not been challenged, he licked his dry lips and blew air into his hands trying to warm them up a little.

'This is going to be easier than we thought, these toy policemen look like they are all asleep in their cozy warm beds.'

Some of the others whose face had looked so young and grim, now grinned, the Lieutenant was relaxed so they were too.

'Alright, let's get this show on the road, we are about to turn into Airport Way where I do expect to be challenged. Leave the talking to me and once we have are through the gate we will determine how many are on guard duty and take it from there.'

There were only two guards stood huddled over a brazier trying to keep warm, they had their weapons, Laser Rifles, still hung low over their backs. 'Halt! Who goes there?' One of them asked.

'Relief column out of Fort Devens, come to relieve the garrison, I am Lieutenant Simon Willard, to who am I speaking?' Nielsen lied smoothly.

'Private Amanda Mota, and Private Muhtaddi Uddin, Sir!' Mota spoke as both guards snapped to attention.

'Well don't just stand there Private, get the darn gate open before we all freeze to death!'

Five wagons trooped into the compound drawing up just behind the main Airport building, there were aircraft of any type here anymore, not even damaged ones. The main building was now the command post, it was pitch black as Nielsen approached the doors.

'Err, Sir! Sir!' shouted Uddin the other guard who had until now been silent.

The newly arrived soldiers were all jumping down from their wagons and paying the Private no attention, when he came scurrying over to the Lieutenant.

'Sir, everyone is in their beds, we don't get too many visitors this far out, shall I rouse the Captain for you?'

'No don't bother, I will let them sleep, we don't want any fuss, not this early in the morning anyway, do we Private?'

'No sir, very good Sir, what will you do in the mean time?'

'Well first I will kill you and then your pretty little friend over there, and then I will have my men here go over slowly and quietly and kill all your friends where they sleep.'

'Sir I'm not sure I understand?' those last words stuttered out of the Privates blood soaked mouth, his eyes widened as he looked down at the thin blade that had just pierced his stomach, before he could cry out in alarm a hand had gone across his mouth, and then a black veil descended across his eyes altogether and his thoughts drifted away to a sunny day spent on a river bank laying in the heat.

Nielsen called quietly to one of the other troopers, 'Go slit her throat, and be quite about it, then post a two man guard. The rest of you come with me, knives out and secure your kit, I don't want anyone to hear us, come on let us each take a hut in groups of two.

Nathan and Cait had returned to the old fort. Major General Ronnie Shaw was putting a group of men and women through their training, she saluted as the pair strolled casually by.

The trainees all stopped and saluted too, but Nathan told them to carry on, 'As you were ladies and gentlemen, please.'

'Ok you girl scouts, you heard the man, hop to it unless you want to be chasing Mirelurks round the outside of the fort for the next hour!'

Cait smiled and sniffed as she did, Nathan felt the urge to place his arm around Cait's shoulder, but had to resist in front of the other ranks, 'All seems well in the world Miss Kenny, and I have to say I do like the feel of it.'

Cait winked at him and they soon disappeared into the Generals quarters. No sooner had their feet touched the top step leading down to Nathan's personal rooms, than Cait had grabbed hold of his hand, giggling like a small child.

'Hey! What about my son? I haven't seen him in over a week!' Nathan received a swift smack on the shoulder from Cait and a look that would chill an open fire.

'I'm just saying my lovely,' Nathan frowned as he spoke in mock disappointment.

'No you are right, Shaun first, then, well you will have to wait and see. Perhaps I'll have a shower first, if that's okay?'

'Only if I can scrub your back Colonel?' Nathan spoke with a fake posh accent.

'Do you offer to wash the backs of all your officers, General?' Cait asked with a cheeky grin.

'No, honestly I've never asked MacCready…I don't think!' he said looking awfully thoughtful.

Cait hit him again just a little harder this time, 'So you don't deny asking anyone else?'

'Like who Miss Kenny?' Nathan was doing his level best to keep up the fake accent.

'Like the Major General?' Cait said inquiringly.

'You mean old iron britches?' Now it was Nathan's turn to lift a hand against Cait.

'You wouldn't strike an officer would you, darling?' Cait oozed provocatively.

Nathan did. Ever so softly he patted Cait on her butt.

If ever there was a mood breaker, surely it's when you fall head long through a door way kissing and canoodling with your partner only to find your private room isn't so private as you might have thought.

'Hi Dad!' Shaun modulated his voice to a slightly high pitch than normal, he had monitored humans doing this all the time when they wanted to surprise their friends and family.

Nathan was still kissing Cait full on her lips when he turned his eyes slightly to his left and there they met with Shaun's.

'Hey, son!' Nathan said in genuine surprise.

'Cait.' Shaun's voice returned to its normal pitch to greet Nathan's lover.

'Hey you! Your looking good, how's things?'

Shaun returned his attention to Nathan, 'Are you staying a while this time?' he asked.

'I've give myself a couple of days, then on Wednesday I have to head back to the Airport for a meeting, but after that I promise I will be around some more, a lot more.'

Nathan pursed his lips and raised his eyebrows when he spoke to Shaun, it wasn't so much by way of placating himself from any feeling of guilt or neglect. It was because he was starting to have it real tough these days. Shaun was not Shaun. He was a fourth generation synth, worse than that, he had been constructed in the image of the real Shaun when that Shaun was a twelve year old boy. However, as he is a synth he can never physically get older, and there in lay the real problem with Nate.

Shaun was now six years older, only he wasn't, his physique was that of a twelve year old, his brain was that of a super computer and the way he looked at you every time was just down right unsettling. Shaun scanned everyone and everything trying to prize as much Intel out of any give thing as he could. He didn't mean anything by it either, he just did it automatically and it was awkward for everyone who had experienced it, not just Nate.

Cait quickly excused herself and went through into the bathroom where she quickly thumbed the buttons on her tunic and began to undress.

Nathan was full of questions for Shaun, How have you been getting on at Fort Hagan? Do you enjoy teaching? Are they treating you right? All the kind of questions a Dad should ask his son, only the answers were always analytical, factual and not at all like a small boy would answer his father.

Once the sun had finally risen Lieutenant Nielsen was able to count the real cost of this expedition into the Commonwealth. His troopers had killed every minuteman and four of the Ambassadors men without any of them getting so much as a scratch in return. It had been a bloody encounter as cold steel met with sleeping minutemen throats.

At first Nielsen wanted to burn all of the bodies but then checked himself against drawing so much attention to them. Instead he looked on the map he had been given of the area, and he noticed at the very end of the runway, down past the huts, there was a body of wetland called single swamp brook. Nielsen quickly order his men to take the bodies and dump them there, then they needed to tidy things up so that everything looked as it should for when the convoy of food and trade goods arrived for the Super-Mutants.

The following day, Tuesday, the convoy pulled into the airfield base and after settling the drivers and their horses down, Nielsen's men set about killing all of those one by one and dumping their bodies with the other's.

Later that same day the Super-Mutants appeared, from the direction of the Green Mountains via route 202, the Mohawk trail.

Brian Virgil, who had been a Super-Mutant himself until he was able to work out a cure, rode on a horse at the head of a group of about fifteen Mutants, they had suspected nothing and were walking calmly and peaceably into a well laid ambush.

The false minutemen were each armed with either a .45 caliber Combat Rifle or a 12 gauge pump action shotgun, these were always the weapons of choice when fighting Mutants. Using lasers was less effective because there was something in the Mutants skin that partially absorbed the charge, and which seemed to energize them for a few minutes afterwards.

Nielsen was ordered to leave the Mutants were they were slain, it had to look like a surprise attack and a massacre, to the other Mutants who would surely follow on from the sound of gunfire. Nielsen gave one last look over the broken. Bloodied green bodies some of which were floating on puddles of blood, so much was spilt.

Nielsen ordered the men to pull out, his three sections of ten soldiers each, were to retreat back to Sanctuary, while a unit of six were to escort all of the food and goods laidened wagons back to Providence.

The Super-Mutants were ever distrusting of the humans, despite all the assurances they had been given repeatedly by Brian Virgil, and so it was this day that they had sent a warband of twenty warriors down along the trail about five hours behind the first group.

This following band were led by the Super-Mutant called 'Strong', and they ran as fast as they could when they heard the opening round of gun fire. When they arrived the humans had all gone and their brothers all slain and left for carrion food.

The War cry that those twenty let loose was heard all the way back in the Green Mountain reservation, it was also heard by the fleeing false minutemen.

Lieutenant Nielsen and his Platoon of thirty arrived at Sanctuary a thirty seven minutes after eleven at night. The guard was alerted to the thundering hooves from their horses, and the clattering from the iron shod wheels over the cracked road surface as they pelted along Commonwealth Avenue, West Concord.

The Guards called the captain of the night watch, as the wagon convoy turned left on to Laws Brook Road, right into Warner Street, and right again at Pond Street.

'Wow, wow! What on earth is all this noise?' The captain called out while holding a burning tar-torch just in front of himself.

Nielsen adopted the demeanor of a terrified Minuteman officer, when he spoke it was in between gasps of air and his voice was broken. 'They killed everyone and they are coming here next!'

'Calm down man! Now slowly, who in blue blazes is coming and who are these dead of which you speak?' Already the captain had instructed the guard to call out the rest of the Minutemen stationed in Sanctuary.

'The Super-Mutants, they have gone on a rampage and are attacking everyone in their path.'

'Don't be so ridicules, why would they do that?' came the response from the captain, still wondering if in fact this was all either a dream and he was tucked up nicely in bed with his partner, or the lads were playing a sick prank on him.

'How the heck do I know, just trust me when I say they are hot on our heels, you need to leave now before it's too late!'

'Leave? Now let me tell you straight, if this is a joke then I don't find it very funny! Anyhow we can't just up and leave these settlers here to their own fate, no, I will not be leaving and neither will you, now get your men inside while I figure out what we are to do.'

The alarm bell in the center of Sanctuary was finally sounded after the vanguard of the Super-Mutant warband had been spotted north east of the settlement.

Within minutes all of the adult residents of the settlement were pouring from their homes, some dressed, some half in, half out of bed clothes, but all were armed and ready at a moment's notice to defend their homes and family's. Captain Sturges realised that in six years of service to the Minutemen this would be his first battle fought against the green skins.


	9. Chapter 9

CHAPTER NINE

Sanctuary was an island community comprising of some two hundred residents, and a small garrison of eleven Minutemen. In a different age the area was known as Warners Pond and it was initially an off chute of the Assabet River that cut through the middle of West Concord. In the last six years, thanks largely to better resource management the water level in the pond had been raised, and the brook at the back which used to lead up to vault 111 had now become a wide channel.

The only way in or out of the settlement, of fourteen houses, was via the bridge on Pond Street so blocking that was the first priority after organizing the people into groups. The Minutemen had used over turned wagons and carts to block the bridge completely, the rest of Sanctuary was surrounded by large dense hedge rows and where there were gaps, the people had blocked them with anything they could grab at short notice, the water wasn't particularly deep in places, but the mutants weren't renown for crossing bodies of fresh water that came above the knee.

The settlers who had either been in the services or trained with them were split into groups of militia and each had a Minuteman to captain them. The fake minutemen had gone across a shallow causeway to a second, much smaller island, where the actual Minutemen garrison was situated.

The garrison was a stone built tower with a sub-basement for storing weapons and ammunition. Nielsen retreated his men to that location tactically because it was nearest to Commonwealth Avenue and his men could snipe the mutants as they came alone the road.

One less body of trained men to worry about, Sturges agreed and waved the men away. Once across on the smaller island these fake minutemen began by ransacking all of the garrison for anything that might aid their cause, and remove it from being of help to the others.

Nielsen's' plan was to force the Mutants into attacking the bridge as he had superior fire power at this point, and while they took the easiest option, he and his men would slip away into the water and across Commonwealth Avenue, away to the Red Rocket service station.

The first warband, whose numbers had now swelled to fifty, attacked as was predicted down Commonwealth Avenue, they were following the scent trail laid down by Nielsen.

The garrison building had an armoury. The armoury had some interesting equipment that Nielsen could use, these included mortars and rocket launchers, not to mention hundreds of boxes of spare ammunition. Any of the ammunition that Nielsen's men weren't intending to use or could not carry was ordered to be thrown into the water.

The battle commenced with Nielsen's men's mortar bombing the warband as it strung itself out along the far bank of the pond, they were obviously looking for a place to cross which could accommodate their numbers. The warband left ten wounded or killed at the waters edge before they got the message and moved further along. They then received a second broadside from the east side of the settlement, this time from the settlers and their minutemen captains who were hidden behind hedge rows and cobbled together defenses., it was a raged volley but it snatched away another three Mutants.

By far the heaviest casualties came as the Mutants were met in disorganized fashion as they tried to storm the bridge. There they were hit from both sides of the bridge and another fifteen were slain. But not before two of the Mutants were able to get their bodies behind the wagons and carts almost forcing them apart by their brute force alone, both recoiled from the weapons fire that reigned down upon them.

Unbeknown to the settlers and minutemen with them, Nielsen had used the frontal attack as a way out for his thirty, and they waded and then swam their way across to Commonwealth Avenue along to the safety of the Red Rocket station.

The Red Rocket Station stood proudly on the reverse slope of the hill that over looked Warners Pond. Bedecked in bright red and white colours that designated its former allegiance to a chain of gasoline stations owned by a global conglomerate before the war. This set against the dull brown broken brick walls of what was hundreds of houses and businesses, just beyond it, of what used to be the township of West Concord.

As the last of these fake minutemen were across the water and up the opposite bank, they had to dive for cover hugging tightly to the banks of the pond, another mighty warband was already appearing from the early morning mist that lapped up from the pond only a few feet away, thankfully for the faker's this warband was heading towards the sound of the gun fire at so didn't expect to run into any humans here.

This warband was full of armoured veterans and unlike there vanguard who proceeded them, were armed with all manner of heavy weapons including a new device they called, the bowling ball bomb, if there was a single man amoungst Nielsen's command who thought that they could have dealt these green skins a killing blow right here, the like of which could scatter their attack so saving the Settlement, they kept very quiet, and stayed completely hidden until the last of the mutants had disappeared.

The Super-Mutants were formed up around the broken houses on Warner Street and Pond Street. The smaller original band were made up of all the young bucks who wanted to make a name for themselves, and who would always rush head long into any conflict. The second band was older more experienced warriors who were led by a very thoughtful and capable Chieftain.

His plan was simple. Explode the bridge barricade using these new bowling ball bombs, and then let the young ones vent their spline and earn the respect of their elders, by charging what remained of the Minutemen bridgehead.

Nielsen had entered a Red Rocket Station that was ablaze with worried settlers and yet another group of Minutemen, this time a squad of five. Looking tired and completely disheveled Nielsen had done his level best to frighten the life out of the settlers who shared the compound around the Gas station, and even before he finished his account of what was happening at Sanctuary, some of them were leaving for Concord with nothing more than the clothes on their backs.

Nielsen had told the Corporal in charge that under no circumstances were they to allow the station to fall into enemy hands, they were to blow the place up as soon as possible and make their way to Concord. Quite what the Super-Mutants would have done with thousands of gallons of gasoline, oil and diesel was unknown, but Nielsen's plan was to starve Nathan's precious vehicles of their liquid food, so that they might fail in the oncoming storm and these terrified wretches were aiding and abetting his every move.

The first rumblings of trouble came to Preston Garvey. He was at the Boston Police Department building which was still under construction, on Massachusetts Avenue and Theodore Glynn Way. By the time news reached the fort, Nathan had already left for the Boston Logan Airport where he was to meet Elder Hartley once more.

Lieutenant General Preston Garvey put out a full Commonwealth call-to-arms. At least five Minutemen from each settlement must assemble, fully armed and with all their equipment at whatever location they were told to go to. One hundred and fifty trained men were heading to Concord, Cait also answered the call on behalf of Nathan, and she would be bringing the full regiment of Iron Horses. One hundred and twenty Motorbike mounted Cavalry, where it would take no less than a half hour for anyone to reach Concord, it took far longer for those called upon to extricate themselves from family or work commitments.

Elder Hartley had just received news from his Lieutenant, Nielsen, about the impending doom which he had conspired towards, to bring an end to the settlement of Sanctuary. To Hartley it was like a beautiful orchestral symphony playing in his ears, the song of which he wanted never to end, but as the footsteps clanged up the elevator, he knew he must end this conversation. His unsuspecting guest was about to enter the intricate web of lies and deceit, the moment was so delicious that Hartley thought that he ought to have a memento made to commemorate the occasion.

'Nathan, how good of you to be here this morning.' Hartley laid on the charm of which he was most famous for, back in the High Council. He was all smiles, like a crocodile to its prey moments before its huge powerful jaws collapsed on it for the very last time.

'Hartley, I trust and hope that your journey went to our mutual satisfaction.' Nathan dug deep into his ensemble of diplomatic skills as he fought back the urge that ached in his every muscle, to pull out his laser pistol and shoot the Elder dead were he stood.

'Excellent news Nathan, I have the authority that we seek to release Maxson and his men into your care, isn't that just wonderful?' If Hartley could have produced a tear or two to add to this performance he truly would have done. Alas the stench of death and decay that was in every corner of this wretched place prevented him from doing so.

'As you say Hartley, excellent news, so what happens next?'

'Why Nathan, I will release these men and women in to your care and you do with them whatever you wish, once they step over the demarcation line between the Commonwealth and the Airport. Come now let's go over there to the Hotel and give them all the splendid news, shall we?'

Hartley called for the Proctor who had shown Nathan up the escalator to accompany them.

'I'm sure you have with you all of the documents that show what we have agreed to here today Nathan? I wouldn't want you to forget that the Brotherhood of Steel now owns this little piece of Boston.'

'Hartley, I have those very documents you cherish here in my breast pocket, you will get them once Arthur and his men have been released.'

The young Super-Mutants all volunteered to be allowed to run halfway across the bridge at Sanctuary to roll the bowling ball bombs down its reverse slope towards the barricades.

These volunteers would be lucky not to be torn apart as they carried out this forlorn task, and that was just the case as Warlord Strong, the Mutant leader called forward three names and set them about their task.

The bowling balls hit the wooden bridge walkway with heavy bang before rolling slowly at first, indivisibly towards their target, the wagons and carts that blocked the bridge. Minutemen and militia alike watched, almost in slow motion, as those three bombs bobbled and bounced their way to the first wagon. There was nothing to do but run for cover.

The resulting explosion smashed anything made of wood into nothing bigger than match wood, anything metal, was torn and twisted and anything flesh and blood, was instantly butchered.

Warlord Strong looked across the bridge, it was lost in an ocean of swirling churning smoke. This was when he gave the command to charge before he could see if the bridge even remained intact, but he knew that his warriors would jump any remaining gap if there was one.

Any human being within one hundred yards either side of the explosion was now nothing more than a pile of burnt or singed offal.

Fifty agile 2.3 ton solid muscle Super-Mutants now pounded their way across the bridge, their guttural war cry rising to an ear piercing crescendo, as the smell of cooked flesh only served to drive the Mutants further into a frenzy.

Anthony Lockwood was just fifteen years old, and lived in the second house on the right, number 3, on this day and he had been sat in his bedroom thumbing through old issues of the Unstoppables, when the bridge barricade was finally breached.

He was excited at the thought that he might actually see his first ever Super-Mutant, he'd read about them in the pages of his favorite comic books, but today, he would see them. The boy lost count as they appeared through the swirling smoke like it were a portal from another dimension.

The Lockwood boys view was fleetingly blocked by the equally sudden appearance of Mrs. Peacock, she was his neighbor from number 1, the house nearest the bridge. Anthony watched her, Mrs. Peacock, in her purple A-line dress that had no sleeves or shoulders, just thin bit of material that clasped at the nape of the neck.

It was odd, Anthony thought, that she should leave home without her shawl or hat, he didn't even see her handbag, Mrs. Peacock never went outside her house without these vital accessories.

There she was just wandering aimlessly across the path of these incredible killing machines as though she were out on a Sunday morning stroll. One of the green skinned warriors, who was in complete contrast to her, wearing only an animal skin about his midriff, stopped and seemed to just stare at Mrs. Peacock, incomprehensibly.

Those great green hands of his worked with such speed and Anthony thought, great artistry as he separated Mrs. Peacock's head from the rest of her body, blood rose like a fountain from the gaping wound around her neck, turning her beautiful purple dress a sort of sticky blackcurrant colour.

Anthony was transfixed, Mrs. Peacock! Who had lived in that same house for over four years and he had never even spoken to her. Mrs. Peacock's lifeless body fell to the ground,

'Well I never.' Uttered the boy, such was that vision that befell his eyes. He scarcely had time to register as the .50mm machine gun round tore through his abdomen severing his torso from his legs. His last thoughts on this earth were of dear old Mrs. Peacock.

Max Krieger lived in the house on the opposite side of the bridge to that of Mrs. Peacock at number 2. Max had barricaded his family inside their house. Huddled in the bedroom furthest away from the front door were Mrs. Krieger and her two children, Nathaniel aged three and Margret aged just eighteen months, oh how baby Margret cried! Max set too, to defended the narrow hallway that ran from the open plan sitting room towards the bedrooms.

A young Super-Mutant warrior, who had not yet earned himself a name, burst through the Krieger front door sending shards of wood and glass in every direction. For what seemed like an eternity, but was perhaps no more than a few seconds, the brute just stood there, enshrined by the rising sun.

Beyond this huge green monolith, the sounds of death and destruction that reigned down upon Sanctuary that day could be heard, accompanied by the stench of death.

Max stared in abject terror, his brain trying to connect to the correct synapse or muscle in order to allow him to press the trigger on his .38 pipe rifle, in fact he was at this point more worried that the weapon was held illegally, it was registered as being only a .30 mm rifle.

The young warrior looked around the room as though trying to perceive the things his eyes were now seeing for the very first time, but then he could have been forgiven as he had lived all his life, up until this day, in the wilds of the forest, and of what need would any of these trinkets have been to him there?

All that muscle and no sense to use it, max now thought as he realised that the mutants back was on fire from the explosion, he must have been one of the first to pass over the burning barricades, His brain, like Max's wasn't at this moment doing him any justice it was too actively engaged in seeking out prey or precious metals with which to earn his new status as a true warrior in the warband,

Max discharged his weapon first, hitting the young warrior square in the chest, if only his gun was of a higher caliber, he thought as he watched the green skin peel back and the first traces of blood begin to ooze out. The young warrior suddenly awoken from his malaise first he dragged his hand down over the wound then he brought his blood soaked hand up to his mouth and licked greedily at the liquid covering it.

'Dis not human blood, dis taste like piss!' oh the lights were definitely coming on but still no one was home…

Max fired a second shot that whistled passed the green skins left ear, grazing it a little.

'Ouch! No fair human that hurt like a sting wing bite.' With that he jumped over the deep red sofa in one huge leap.

Max might have spared the time, in-between firing his weapon wildly, to wonder why this creature hadn't returned his fire, except what he didn't know was that all young bucks were armed only with non-ballistic weapons.

It was part of their rite-of-passage that they had to fight with hand held weapons like clubs and mattocks, or axes and crudely made swords with curved blades. This adolescent hero held a huge two handed mallet, which he promptly swung up in an arc, almost clipping the ceiling before bringing it down square on the unfortunate Mr. Krieger's head. Crushing it completely.

A scream from the bedroom revealed to the warrior that other occupants were still to be located, first he wanted to taste the forbidden fruit which was human blood. Now Brian Virgil had created these Super-Mutants with a rather interesting chemical induced metamorphosis, when human blood mixed with the acids in their gut.

The young warrior slumped to his knees clutching his stomach, oh the pain was excruciating so much so that it caused the thing to be sick, all over the remains of Mr. Krieger. Then his skin began to change colour not like from green to blue or anything like that, but to an even deeper shade of green and it took on a more leathery look, now if Mr. Krieger had still been able to fire a shot or two they would simply have bounced right off!

All young warriors must undertake the transformation, from nameless buck to titled warrior, but this one had undergone another altogether quite different one. The cries of the bay now levered him from his daydream this time and he took no time at all to smash open the door to his left, it turned out to be an empty bathroom.

If he had been paying proper attention he would have realised that the sobbing child wasn't in the next room either, but it didn't stop him from braking that door as well. Then there was one, the bedroom furthest away, which gave no resistance when kicked just a few inches left of its handle.

Mrs. Krieger remarkably kept her calm now, it was both her children who bellowed and wailed instead. The noise alone was enough to drive the warrior into a frenzy, adding to that was the freshly pooling blood from behind him and the smell of death that permeated every nook and cranny of the house.

He grabbed first for the women and after clenching only thin air, he made a second lunge with his hand. This time as he brought his left arm back, he was holding a prize, it was the very small child and it was making a heck of a racket, so much so that the warrior could only think to silence it, and in a moment he did just that.

He clenched his powerful jaws around the child's right shoulder and chest and then bit down hard snapping the child in two, its lower half falling to the floor with a thud. As the fresh blood ran down the warrior's throat, Mrs. Krieger noticed that his whole body seemed to shudder, as though he had been racked by some sort of seizure.

His eyes glazed over and then turned completely red, a burning fire red like those she could imagine of a demon. The mallet reigned down now on the second child popping it like a giant sack of blood, and that was when Mrs. Krieger found a voice of her own. A primeval scream that built from the depth of her soul, one with which the warrior joined in with, a crescendo of wild abandonment.

With the depth skill and agility of an athlete in her prime, which she must certainly wasn't, Mrs. Krieger leapt at the monster in her midst. In her right hand she clutched a knitting needle, long and thick, from where or how it came to be where it was she did not know, but within the blink of an eye she was straddling the body of the warrior.

He dropped his weapon and gripped his hands either side of her tiny waist. The knitting needle was driven deep into the left eye of the Mutant, blood immediately spurted out covering Mrs. Krieger's face with a thick warm stickiness forcing her to spit to stop it engulfing her mouth.

The warrior squeezed her tiny body tightly and she felt the first of her ribs snap and pierce her lungs, the pain burnt through her like a searing hot poker. Adrenaline enabled her to thrust the needle down one last time, this time into the warriors' right eye, so hard that it bent as it broke through into his brain, and then he staggered and fell.

Mrs. Krieger's triumph was short lived however as the monster continued to squeeze the very life out of her, but it was not that which took the heroic Mrs. Krieger's life as she fell on top of him, astride his torso, her hands locked tightly around the shaft of the needle, sliding down towards his blooded face, it was the fire, the house was engulfed and consumed within minutes.

The second on the left, neighbors of the Krieger's, at number 2, lived the Duggan family. Fergus Duggan was a corporal in the Militia and he had quickly organized a two man .30 mm machine gun team to fire towards the bridge from his bedroom window. Chatter, chatter, chatter, went the bullets, tearing and ripping into the tidal wave of green flesh, body after body fell to the ground but not once did the tide ebb.

One after another Super-Mutants were attempting to cross the bridge and it is a testament to its builders that it even held such a weight. Fergus and his wife took to the sitting room window and were both firing .38 caliber Pipe rifles, Mrs. Duggan's mantel piece showing off no less than five trophies she had won in various shooting competitions. The Duggan's and the machine gun nest were only silenced after a quick witted Mutant had thrown his second and then third Molotov through their window, causing a terrific explosion and fireball throughout the building. Though they would never know it, the Duggan's and the minutemen between them had laid fifteen Mutants to rest.

Having over run the bridge barricades, now the fight around the first five houses, number five being the house where the old track ran up towards vault 111, was slowly turning into a bloodbath, feet both human and mutant now struggled to stay up right as they sloshed and splashed about in macabre fashion in the mud mixed with blood. Inextricably one human after another fell beneath the weight and ferocity of the attack.

Mama Murphy was down under ground, in a utility room adjacent to the ladder that ran up to the manhole cover right in the centre of the street were all fighting was taking place. The blood fell like torrential down through the drains at the side of the road into the sewers in which she had sort her own kind of Sanctuary. For one hour she had sat and worked her fingers to put together a new over vest and to modify her juju stick. Mama Murphy could take no more!

The manhole cover burst open and so startled the fighters that they momentarily stopped what they were doing to stand and gape. Well at least the noise had died down a bit she thought.

She emerged, first her right hand, then the long stick which was cover in things wrapped with silver tape that was held in her left hand., followed by her head and then the rest of her body, twice she had to wriggle this way and that, because the new vest was almost too fat to allow her to come up out from her concealment.

Still mesmerized the mutants and humans watched and waited, what was Mama Murphy doing? The spectators were none the wiser when she seemed to break into some sort of a chant, and a dance, of sorts. Now if it wasn't for the fact that Mama Murphy had lived amoungst the Mutants for four of the last five years they might have been forgiven for simply slaying her right there and then.

However, the Mutants held Mama Murphy in the highest of esteems, she was a shaman to them, searching out herbs and plants in the wild that once boiled or smoked could put them in touch with the gods, the humans for their part were just glad to be rid of her for a short while as they just saw her as a total smack head!

Mama Murphy's dance had brought her into the very heart of the mutants now, and slowly some of the more quick witted humans had used this time to make good their escape. She roared a great roar that the mutants joined in with, then she moved forward to one who had a smoking weed hanging from his mouth, 'Aren't you going to light old Mama Murphy up, dearie?' Whether the green skin was completely stupid or just plain insane we will never know, as she was not asking for a lite for her cigarette, for it was the juju stick that she held out in front of her.

At the moment her blood soaked cloak fell open to reveal the true nature of her work, the juju stick was ensconced with over thirty sticks of dynamite and her vest had woven into it frag grenades and cloth bags full of nails and broken glass, the explosion ripped the group apart spewing lumps of green skinned mutant and humans flesh apart, it was as though a gigantic rock had been dropped into a lake from on high such was the tidal wave of blood and limbs.

What survived of humanity in Sanctuary Hills now huddled behind their second defensive line , this one stretched from Nathan's old house, number 9 right over to the "show home of the future," number 6. The mutants were temporarily knocked back to the mouth of the bridge, once the shock and awe had pasted the mutants charged the second line of defense, now though their numbers were seriously depleted.

Warlord Strong sensed from the other side of the lake that things had gone badly and it was at this point that he unleashed his dogs of war. Thirty mutant hounds raced across the bridge and straight towards the second line, woe be tide any mutant who stood in there way for they too would have been trampled to death, like homing torpedoes they came.

Captain Sturges had formed his Minutemen and those trained militia units up into three long firing lines, one crouching directly behind the barricades and another stood with guns pointing over their heads and the third formed up immediately behind the second. Nathan used to call this tactic, rolling thunder. 'Hold your fire men!' shouted Sturges, 'wait until you see the whites of their eyes, and fire!'

Sixty four weapons discharged almost simultaneously, the Minutemen with laser muskets, and the others with .30 caliber CM1 Garand Rifles, useless at long distance but deadly when used as a close quarter assault rifle. 'Second row down!' bellowed Sturges, 'third row stand and fire!' this was rolling thunder, a third concealed row albeit with all manner of different weapons suddenly appearing and adding to the wall of hot lead, steel and fire that decimated those hounds of war, adding to the butchers bill in the devil's own charnel house.

Warlord Strong had a trick or two of his own still to play and he unleashed his strongest weapon, the veterans, and the heavily armoured warriors who carried Gatling guns and rocket launchers as well as laser weapons of their own. For over an hour the two sides tore into each other and casualties mounted on both sides so much so that a wall of the dead was forming at the second defensive line, forcing both groups to aim slightly higher or risk just hitting the fallen.

The humans were just no match for these creatures, who had been genetically created for war by those smart thinking scientists. Created in a petri dish, nurtured and then trained in the art of war by synthetic soulless facsimiles of humans at the Institute, except in one key area, they out thought the mutants that was until Sturges had called on a group to re-supply their dwindling ammunition from the armoury, and none was forth coming.

Codsworth had up until now been rounding up as many of the young children of Sanctuary Hills as he could, they were being guided to an underground shelter out back of number 15, ironically there was no number 13 as even now people were too superstitious about that number.

Jun Long and his wife Marcy long were part of a platoon of militia who were crammed into number 15, it was their mission to draw the mutant's fire until the last possible moment to allow the children to be saved. As the second line eventually fell Sturges was able to retreat in orderly fashion out front of this last house, his force now contained less than thirty men and women and practically no ammunition, it was spent and their lives would follow with the passing of the final rounds fired.

Now re-enforced with veterans and heavy armoured warriors the remainder of the hounds and the young warriors set about pouring their fire into what was left of the defenders, body after body was cut down on both sides, but it wasn't long before the whole of Sanctuary had succumbed to fire and a dense acrid cloud of smoke, the early morning was awash with the cries of the maimed and dying, of the warriors in full battle cry and of the vanquished in mournful sorrow.

The cries of the children were heard above the rest of the din as the last of the humans were silenced for the last time, now the older mutants turned their attention to the sound from the back cellar. Codsworth single handedly hacked, shot, sliced and battered his way through all those who tried to gain access to the children.

When a mutant grabbed at two of his four arms he was able to cut or burn them with his other two, his armoured metal skin almost oblivious to the small arms fire, and his balancing gyros likewise against any attempt to destabilize him. All around his base the bodies piled up. He dare not fail. The lives of so many of the settler's children now lay hidden beneath where he was, and then they stopped! The mutants were standing away from his reach.

He was solid and immovable, they were weary of fighting him, a thing that brought them no honour but only death.

This was not a retreat on the green skins part nor was it a victory for Codsworth. It was merely a pause, time for Warlord Strong to re-think his strategy.

Codsworth was silenced finally when he was hit from three sides by mutant rocket launchers. Then his broken and mangled body was pulled apart by the victorious mutants some of whom wished to wear his wires, gears and cogs, around their necks as spoils of war.

The rest of the mutants now set about feasting on human flesh all around the settlement rang the sound of braking bones and gorging Mutants. The cries from the cellar grew in tempo, driving those who had fought the mechanical thing, further into a frenzy. The mutants ripped and hit the steel doors, eventually the heavy steel doors gave way allowing the damp tepid air to be sucked inside. Giant green skinned creatures drenched in blood and gore, dropped into the former storm cellar, greedily grabbing and snatching at each of those children, plucking them away into the mouths of the lust driven demented, Super-Mutants.

Four minutemen who no longer even looked human and who could have easily walked right through the mutants such was their state now, had decided that they should try to escape, that their dying now would serve no purpose. It wasn't cowardice either or self-preservation, it was in a genuine attempt to bring word to the other settlements of the slaughter that had taken place.

Only thirty or so Super-Mutant Warriors, young and old survived but the canny Warlord had already sent back word for re-enforcements, so now the task for the victors was to round up any humans who had surrendered, although surrender wasn't a concept that Mutants understood, they gratefully accepted that the fighting was over.

The humans that hadn't lost their lives but had against all odds stayed alive, now so bloody and broken were indistinguishable male from female, not that it mattered, because if there was one thing Super-Mutants loved more than making war, it was the after battle feast, and to them male flesh tasted just the same as female flesh.

Whether it was the sounds or the smell, or even the glow from the burning buildings, the Corporal at the Red Rocket Station had finally abandoned all hope, and acquiesced to the Lieutenants request to evacuate the place immediately. Demolition charges were set and final orders barked out at the minutemen and ten minutes later not a single soul remained. The station was deserted but for the ticking down of the demolition charges' timer.

The charges had been set for a further twenty minutes after the last man had left, in the hope that some or any of the Super-Mutants might be caught in the explosion if they had ventured this far from Sanctuary. The very thought of abandoning Sanctuary had turned the Corporals stomach, but to leave the Station without a single shot being fired, that just shredded his nerves, so much so that he seemed almost happy when the Lieutenant, Nielsen he remembered, had taken responsibility away from him by rank.

The four Minutemen swam across the lake all the time looking around in hope that they had not been spotted by the Mutants. The only direction they didn't look was straight behind them, that sight would have been far too painful, and they could imagine just from the feral screams alone it was a place they never wished to return too.

Journeying on foot, soaking wet from head to foot the four escapees made their way along the hedge rows down Commonwealth Avenue towards the brow of the hill. The journey to the Red Rocket Station took nineteen minutes and as it came into view their hearts began to be lifted.

On entering the fortified enclosure however they were completely perplexed. Where had everyone gone? Nothing was out of place nor had it been damaged in fact inside the main building hot food was still in pans, some even on plates, it was if everybody had just up and left – vanished in the blink of an eye! How very prophetic those last thoughts had been.

It was at that very moment that the ground beneath these four began to shudder, followed by a deep rumbling sound, barely audible at first, the four looked on in total confusion,

Could this day get any stranger or even any worse after all they had survived so far.

The inquisitive looks hung on their respective faces as the first of the underground petrol tanks exploded, not a minute later another, and then a third. Then there was nothing but belching flames framed by pitch black smoke.

From the security of Concord, those whose eyes were turned up the hill towards the Red Rocket Station, witnessed the explosion, and the resulting gigantic fireball. That was followed quickly by the whoosh of super-heated air that jetted over the whole of the settlement. Where the Red Rocket once stood in proud vigilance to a long lost age, now was gouged out of the earth a crater hundreds of yards wide and twice as deep, like some great hand of the gods had descended and scooped the very place away.


	10. Chapter 10

CHAPTER TEN

Elder Hartley had sat down in conference with Arthur Maxson and Nathan going over the finer points of the deal that had been struck. The Brotherhood of Steel now owned the entire site that was formerly known as Boston Logan Airport. Both of the Airships would be moored here for the time being. The Brotherhood had the right to fly Verti-Birds outside of the Boston Circle, which was Interstate 93 and 95.

They could hunt or forage for food outside of those same limits which included land that was claimed by the Commonwealth providing they had sort permission from the new Governor, otherwise the Brotherhood and the Commonwealth were as two separate entities.

Arthur Maxson was to be named as interim Governor until such time that a fair and equal election for the position could be held. All of the former Brotherhood personnel who came with Maxson would be integrated into the Commonwealth armed forces or into civil administrations that would run the new Commonwealth.

There were to be no recriminations towards any personnel who wished to remain with the Brotherhood. Those who joined Maxson would not be allowed to take or remove any weapons or equipment from the Airport. To do so would be considered an act of criminality.

All parties would agree to abide by the outcome of the ongoing trail, regardless of its eventual outcome.

The Market would remain operating at the Airport and an equal rate of exchange would be agreed upon so that trade could take place. The Commonwealth used coins and paper money that the Minutemen had seized from old Banks and automated cash machines, caps were also legal tender. The Brotherhood dealt in gold, and it appeared to Nathan that they had lots of it.

The meeting broke up on an amicable note with the three persons present raising a glass in toast to one and all.

Maxson, Nathan and fifty men and women of all ranks filed out of the main gates of the Airport, they were met by a rather disturbed looking Colonel R. J. MacCready along with several CM113 APC's and a squadron of mechanized infantry. The Colonel was in full dress uniform.

Hartley watched the reunion of old friends from the safety of his office and the view from the security cameras, he lazily popped a pill into his mouth while lifting his feet up to rest on the edge of his walnut brown desk. 'Doesn't it just make you glow all over? The things we can do for these poor miserable wretches.'

'Sir, do you mean the Commonwealth?' asked Proctor Eugene Nash keenly.

'Yes, yes, they do not yet know to what extent we control them.' Hartley's voice tapered away as though he was either bored or suddenly lost in thought.

'Operation Possum, Sir?'

'Isn't it just wonderful? Only weeks ago it lay in tatters and then by the invisible hand of some unknown god of fortune, Nathan Dewitt strides confidently into my hands and offers it right back to me on a plate!'

 _Outside the main gates;_

'General Dewitt, Nathan! All hell has broken loose and we find ourselves, in your absence, in a state of war!' MacCready importuned.

Nathan looked at Arthur, Arthur returned his concerned, incredulous look back in equal measure.

MacCready then set about reporting the day's events as carefully as he could, including all of the action that, Preston, Cait and he, had taken.

Nathan asked if any of Fort Hagan's hardware had been deployed and seemed to be non-committed when he was told, no. Nathan turned to Arthur Maxson and asked how many of his people would be able to fight straight away.

Arthur spoke with Danse briefly before answering, twenty knights but they would need arms and armour. Nathan said they were to go straight to Vault 88 where they would be fully equipped with T-60f Power Armour and a choice of weapons from, Plasma Rifles to Laser Gatling Guns, or Rocket launchers if they so wished.

They were the first three CM 113's to pull away from the gathering outside the gates of Boston Airport.

'Arthur, we don't have any Verti-Birds but we do have something similar, they are called Chickasaw's, we just don't know if or how they work, do think you have anyone who could try?'

'Proctor Quinlan, Lancer Captain Kells, take two squads of Scribes each and go with the drivers Nate assigns to you.'

'Anything else Nate?' Arthur asked.

'Yes you need to take a team with you to the Governor's office over at the Massachusetts State House in downtown Boston, I have already got people there working hard and they will be expecting you.'

'Professor Scara, Proctor's Teagan and Ingram you all come with me. The rest of you go with the transport over to the new Police Building and link up with Lieutenant General Garvey.'

The journey for Nathan and the others from the Airport would take around one hour and five minutes, he had summoned all of the Commonwealth's reserve forces and they were also to meet him there in the centre of Concord.

As they travelled, Nathan and the others began to plan the campaign but something kept on nagging at the back of Nate's mind, why had the Super-Mutants attacked? He needed answers to even begin to understand what things lay ahead.

Studying maps of the area and over lapping what they thought they knew about the attack, between them the leaders of the new Commonwealth forces decided on a plan of action. The forces would need to be split into three mobile battalions; "A", "B", and "C". Once they had reached the center of Concord they would each split up and go to the following location and dig in. "A" battalion would head south along Sudbury Road until they hit highway "2" there they would turn right and head up Concord Turnpike as far as the bridge of the Sudbury River. This side of the river was not built upon so would be relatively easy to defend once the battalion had dug in.

"B" battalion would cover Concords right flank, they would follow Lowell Road out of Concord, over the Concord River as far as a place called Macones Pond. This is situated where the Assabet River forks left towards West Concord and right into a series of Ponds and wetland areas. Here there were two adjacent houses, one off Lowell Road and the other across from it on Barnes Hill Road, they were surrounded by a wooded area and at their backs was a large pond.

"C" battalion would stay in Concord itself concentrating on Main Street and Elm Street where there were two bridges over the Sudbury River, along with a small detachment at the little bridge on Nashawtuc Road half way along Main Street between the other two bridges and the town center. Forward Command Headquarters were situated at Hanscom Field, at the former U.S. Airforce base. Professor Scara was assigned to HQ as executive officer to Major General Ronnie Shaw, this would also be the centre for all Intel, wounded on both sides, and if there were to be any autopsies to be carried out on the green skins.

Directly each battalion had been given one company of 120 Minutemen in heavy combat armour, armed with Browning Automatic Rifles (BAR), CM1 Garand Rifles, CM1 and CM2 carbines, frag grenades and grenade launchers. One Company of mechanized infantry which comprised of six CM8 Greyhound vehicles, eleven CM113 Armoured personnel carriers, a platoon of thirty of the 'Iron Horses', motorcycle cavalry. In reserve, once they had arrived would be ten power armour Knight in T-60f suits along with five in T-45c Minutemen power armour, for each battalion. "C" battalion would also include a Battery of six CM101A1 howitzers.

If the flyboys from Maxson's group of ex-brotherhood pilots could get the Sikorsky H-19 Chickasaw's airborne then they too would be given a mission brief and attached to the battalions, their role should they arrive in time, was to ferry the wounded back to Concord, they were forbidden to act in a combat role as they were considered too vulnerable to the missile launchers held by the Super-Mutants.

"A" battalion was put under the command of Proctor Teagan and given Colonel Robert Joseph MacCready as an executive officer, "B" battalion was given to Proctor Ingram with Colonel Cait Kenny as executive officer, and "C" battalion was given to Lieutenant General Preston Garvey with Lancer-Captain Kells as his executive officer. Nathan's role in any forth coming action was less clear even to himself, after organizing everything else he kept having nagging doubts about just what was going down and why. He was confident that whatever was going to happen though that the commonwealth was in good hands – Cait was as worried by his talk as any of his close friends were.

Now all anyone could do was just sit and wait.

The hours following the loss of Sanctuary and the Red Rocket gas station were full of troop maneuvers, five separate bridges needed to be covered and the townsfolk needed to be organized. Nathan called for a meeting at the old town clerk's office on monument square, it boasted the widest open space where Nathan wanted to address as many of the people as possible.

As the hours ticked by late into the night and early into the following morning, The Mayor of Concord, Henry Willard, and his esteemed guest's, the leaders of the new Commonwealth military talked until they had thrashed out a plan. Nathan would give a speech later that day in front of the Clerk's office, after which he would take a tour of the three battalions and then head off into enemy territory on a reconnaissance mission.

While Nathan put finishing touches to his speech, men out front of the building were putting together a raised platform on which he was to give his address.

Everyone's mood brightened once former Knight Captain Danse arrived with thirty power armour suited men, no longer wearing the gun metal grey of the Brotherhood, but resplendent in green/olive drab, the colours of the old United Sates military, on their right arm they bore a new emblem, a flag.

At the same time a new flag was being hoisted up the flagpole outside the Clerk's office, alongside the original white flag of Massachusetts, which carried the figure of a Native American enclosed in a blue shield. It was important for people to know their roots, but it was just as important to give them hope, something to strive for and this new flag represented that.

This second flag was styled very much in the fashion of an old flag that would now only have been known to Nathan Dewitt, that flag was called "the Betsy Rose" and a common misconception was that it's design was attributed to the afore mentioned Mrs. Betsy Ross. She was depicted in a famous painting as sitting with General George Washington himself and describing how she cut the stars, which she had arranged in a circle instead of lines to stitch on to the blue canton of the flag.

There were of course hundreds if not thousands of old tattered, torn and discarded American flags all over former Massachusetts not that anyone living now would have realised quite what they once represented to millions of people the world over. What Nathan had proposed would only enhance what they had already.

This new flag, "the Betsy Rose II" consisted of a navy blue canton in its upper left with thirty two silver stars set out in a circle, these represented all of the settlements that made up the Commonwealth. The rest of the flag (the field) consisted of a series of red, white, and blue horizontal lines, twelve in all, these were to represent the multi-divergent society of Human's, Synth's, and Ghouls. Its name was to be, the flag of the Commonwealth of United Settlements.

 _The day of Nathan's speech._

Nathan stood on the raised platform that had been erected in front of the main double doors to the Clerk's house, alongside him was Mayor Henry Willard, and Preston Garvey. Arrayed in front of the podium were a line of Minutemen who had been polished up for the occasion, and they were flanked by a single Knight in T-60f power armour.

The Mayor was the first to speak, 'Good afternoon everyone, and thank you for coming.'

There was quite a crowd gathering and sporadic clapping broke almost as soon as the Mayor had begun speaking.

'As I look around this sea of faces today I notice only a handful of you who were here on that fateful day six years ago, when we met on this very spot!'

 _Pause for more applause._

'How many were we? Twelve? I don't remember exactly, but I do remember that we took charge of this land from another, one who had almost sacrificed his own life days before in order that those others amoungst you, who already lived here but hid in fear of your lives, may once more immerge into the light of day, please give it up for Lieutenant General Preston Garvey.'

 _Loud applause along with whistles, hoots and all manner of happy noises._

Preston stood still, waiting for the adulation to die down, 'Thank you, everyone especially the Mayor for his very kind words.'

 _A ripple of applause once more._

'It is correct and befitting that Mayor Willard mentioned that day six years ago. _Pause_. Why, you may ask? Because of this man here at my side.' Preston pointed to Nathan.

'This man came wandering into town looking for his son, but looking every bit as lost himself.'

 _Fierce applause._

'He must have herd the gun fire, but instead of running away he did something that I have never seen repeated in these last six years or in any other year before either!'

The crowd now broke out into all manner of shouts from 'Yes sir!' to 'Amen' and everything in between.

'Nathan Dewitt shot and killed nine members of a raider gang that had me and a few others pinned in this very building behind me!'

 _Loud applause._

'He single handily saved us, and some of you too, who were too young or too old or too scared to fight them yourselves, but he didn't stop there. _Pause_. Nathan then had to fight a wild Deathclaw who had made its home in the sewers beneath our very feet.'

'Yes sir. He did that too! Please now show your appreciation for our next guest of honour General Nathan Dewitt.'

 _The crowd erupted in jubilant celebration._

'Thank you, everyone. Can I just clarify one thing though before I continue, that Deathclaw, he was only a baby, not a foot over seven foot?!'

Laughter broke out between sporadic groups and some more hand clapping.

'Okay, first let me begin properly by having these fine soldiers stood out in front here returned to their units. Take a long hard look at them because tomorrow they may not be with us, now, I want them to leave because war is NOT pretty and war does not look anything like these boys here!'

Nathan turned to look at a Sergeant who was stood at the side of the platform, 'Return them to their units, if you please.'

 _The crowd no longer laughed or applauded, there were sounds, but they were of anger and fear._

Nathan held his hands high, a gesture which he used to quiet the noise down. 'I want you to know that what these fine boys and girls represent though is hope, hope in a future where they can dress this way, and why? Because the fighting will be over and we will have peace.'

 _The mood of the crowd changed slightly, as some now cheered once more._

'When I look around the faces in this crowd I can recognize some of you, we were here on this very spot, six years ago – remember when we had defeated the Raider gangs?'

 _Cheers mixed with shouts of agreement._

'Do you remember a time when there were no Minutemen to turn to for help, and your new community was under threat, what did you do?'

 _'_ _We fought together side by side!' came a chorus of shouts._

'Yes you did, husbands, wives, sons and daughters. All of you stood together and fought whatever came your way, and now we ask that you do the same again.'

 _A great chorus of agreement filled the air._

'Whoever wants to be part of this new nation, this Commonwealth of United Settlements, and is between the ages of sixteen and sixty, meet here tomorrow morning at nine o'clock sharp, we have guns and equipment and we have the best instructors in the commonwealth to train you.'

The chorus of approval rang loud and proud late into the night. Nathan received the thanks and congratulations from many as he stepped down from his platform and made his way over to a waiting jeep.

The following morning over half of the nine hundred people who had stood and listened had returned, some looked younger than sixteen and other older than sixty but those who were lied about their age were gratefully accepted into the ranks of the New Concord Militia, and in total three battalions could be formed from the men and women who turned out.

Nathan was walking with Preston, Cait and Professor there mood had been nothing if not up beat at the turn out of locals, of course they were never going to put into combat, all had agreed, never the less it was good for morale that so many had volunteered. Natalie Wright had sent reporters and photographers to Concord to make sure her readership didn't miss a thing, and all in all things were definitely looking up.

Major General Ronnie Shaw appeared with a fleet of Dodge cargo trucks each bristling with uniforms, basic combat armour, weapons and ammunition. They had parked up alongside the Clerk's office as Nathan's party had rounded the corner, 'General, Sir's and Ma'am.' Shaw saluting as she addressed each in turn.

'Good to see you major! I trust the journey went well, no incidents to report?' Preston replied.

'No sir! We did come across a platoon of your men on I-2 on the way in though, they were parked up at the bridge over the Cambridge Turnpike, I reckoned it was odd but I checked their papers personally, and everything was in order, so I let them continue.'

'Carry on? What exactly where they doing Shaw?' that was Nathan who inquired, frowning at the others as he spoke.

'General, they had orders to blow the bridge!? Now Ronnie Shaw looked puzzled.

'What? Who the heck gave those orders to do that? Nathan was not amused.

'Begging your pardon, Sir, you did!' Ronnie was narrowed her eyes as she continued, 'It was your signature Nathan, but am I right in thinking it really wasn't?'

'Damn straight Major General, which has got me thinking about something else.'

'What's that Nathan,' inquired Cait.

'Just who did we get this intelligence off that the attack on Sanctuary was really Super-Mutants?' Nathan's eyes were wide, his right hand on his forehead, 'Preston, fetch me the man who gave you the Intel on the attack, immediately!' the last word was snarled at Preston, but not at Preston, at those responsible for this elaborate mascaraed.

Nathan turned to Ronnie, 'You! Get a team together and go see what the heck they were up to, but be careful, if they have rigged the bridge don't get careless, if they haven't, well just find a way to stop them.'

Cait, MacCready, there's nothing more to do here, I will handle the Intel, I need you two to get back to your units.'

Preston came running back to Nathan with another soldier in tow, Corporal Sara Sampson.

The Corporal stood to attention, Nathan told her to stand easy. 'Now, Corporal you are the one who informed Lieutenant General Garvey about the situation at Sanctuary were you not?'

'Affirmative, Sir!'

'How did you come by this information?'

'A Lieutenant. Him, and his platoon were high tailing it in from Sanctuary, they said it was a massacre.'

'That was it, Corporal?'

'He was a senior officer, Sir!' Sara stated as though it was an offence to question such things.

'Okay, but the report I received was a little more specific that that, so where did the rest of the detail come from?'

'Sir the Lieutenant came in with the garrison from Red Rocket, he must have told them some more stuff, that's where I picked it up from.'

Nathan flicked through the report that Preston had handed to him. 'They were told that this platoon had come from further north, from the Trading post?'

'Yes, sir.'

'They said that they were the relief column and that on arrival they discovered the post and all who were there had been killed?'

'Yes, sir, they said they fought their way out and made for Sanctuary, but that the Mutants had followed them.'

'Yet nobody asked why they hadn't called this through themselves, or better yet why did they not stop to fight, they numbered around thirty didn't they?'

'Yes sir they did, but as I said I was given an order by a senior officer, and something else too!'

'Don't tell me Corporal, they had signed orders from me?'

'Yes sir.'

'Gaud damn it! We have been played, out thought and out smarted but by who and why?'

'Preston, I need you to do something for me, corporal, return to your unit, dismissed!'

Nathan grabbed a couple of hours sleep inside the Clerk's house before heading back outside to his jeep. He drove a mile alone Main Street to one of the bridges that were being guarded by "C" battalion, his destination was the South Bridge Boat House on the far bank, this was "C" battalion's forward headquarters. Cait was delighted to see Nate again so soon but the look on his face told her he wasn't here because he missed her.

'Hi Cait! Is Preston here yet?'

'I haven't seen him, I wouldn't have expected to this side of the river either to be honest, why? What are you two cooking up Nate?'

'It's a reunion, of sorts, I asked him to meet me here with an old friend.'

Just then Cait pointed behind Nathan, Preston was driving a second jeep toward them from the other side of the river. Cait wondered what was going on but thought better than to ask, anyway Preston was here now so she would soon enough.

'Hey Preston, did you manage to procure the services of my old friend?'

'Sure did General, he's flat out on the back seat, are you sure you two want to do this on your own?'

Cait was intrigued.

Nathan whistled.

Cait turned to him, looking at him like he had gone mad, 'What in the world, Nate?'

Her words hung in the air as a strange almost keening sound came from the back seat of the jeep.

'Here boy, come to Daddy!' Nathan spoke gently as though he were talking to his son, his real son that is.

The keening became a whine followed by three separate barks, then the large German Shepard sprang up from the back seat of the jeep and bounded over to Nathan, he was now down on one knee. 'Not that mangy mutt, I thought for sure he was worm bait by now!' observed Cait.

Cait and Dogmeat had both vied for Nathan's affection, but for some reason whenever the two of them were together with Nate, the raggedy tailed critter had always won out, and that included sharing a bed space with Nate so that she always ended up sleeping on her own.

'So what's with the big pow-wow with the Bow-wow, Nathan?'

'Dogmeat and I are going for a little walk in the countryside, just to stretch our legs, aren't we boy?'

Dogmeat, yapped excitedly as though he understood every word his master had just spoken.

'Oh I see! It's like that is it?' Cait looked straight at the dog when she spoke, he, for his part just whined some more and lay down flat with his front two paws over his eyes.

'Cait he's got tracking skills we both lack, I need him for this mission.'

'He's got flees! That's what he has got.' Dogmeat seemed to like that, as he rolled over on his back three or four times.

'Oh stop it now you mangy hairball!' Cait tried to sound angry but the truth was she just wanted to be with Nate, to be able to watch his back, and she would far rather have her Carbine than Dogmeat's teeth and claws.

'Cait I need you here to watch my back, don't you understand? That is why I always send you out with MacCready these days, you and he watch each other, you and I share something very special, and that makes things complicated.'

'Complicated, seriously?' Cait could barely catch her breath.

'I love you Cait, and when we are out on patrol I am not as focused as I should be.'

Cait stood unable to speak, her mouth opened but no words came out.

'Seriously, I am too busy wondering if you are alright, all the darn time, so much so I think I lose my edge out there.'

Cait's eyes welled with tears, she understood.

MacCready had heard enough, 'Oh for the love of God, just kiss each other and Nate get the heck out of here before I turn my gun on you both and then myself!'

Nate stared deep into Cait's eyes as if mesmerized by her beauty. Cait leaned forward and they kissed, pulling away shortly after, she whispered into his ear, 'take care of yourself my love.'


	11. Chapter 11

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Nathan and Dogmeat made their way along the side of Main Street, from the Boathouse turning left where the road went under the Fitchburg railroad bridge. It was early Sunday morning and the weather, for March, was holding up, not hot, but certainly not cold or wet.

If it wasn't for the fact that the road was deserted apart from abandoned vehicles and the cheerful singing of birds in the distance, you might have been mistaken into thinking that this was one man and his dog just out for a Sunday stroll.

Military training bleached Nathan's mind of Cait, the Commonwealth and anything else for that matter, this was a mission and he needed to get his head into the game, and quickly.

Having walked under the bridge Nathan decided that it might be a good idea to walk up along the racks towards West Concord at least.

Once up on the track bed Nathan could see that there were no houses to his immediate left all the way to the Concord Turnpike that ran right across the back of West Concord. On his right were the rear gardens to the houses that ran along Neshoba Road, they were so overgrown you would have had to stand on their roof's to spot him and his four legged companion.

The walk took twenty minutes as the two moved along the backs of the gardens, here and there they had to cross open spaces but they stopped and checked every time before moving again, Nathan was running on instinct and military discipline, Super-Mutants could smell a human from half a mile away at least.

Once passed the Turnpike, a raised section of highway, Nathan dropped the pace yet further, 'Sorry boy,' he said, 'this place is too exposed from here on in so we need to be cautious, OK?'

Dogmeat whined quietly in reply as though he understood every word his master had uttered.

'Good boy!' Nate said while patting the hound's right flank.

On Nate's right there was wide open brush that was completely overgrown, on his left he counted four blocks of houses before there was another brake. These houses were the backs of Courtland Avenue, he knew he wasn't far from Sanctuary now because he could still see flames from the burning buildings and the smell.

The brake in the houses was were two tennis courts were situated, their hardcore surface now dull and mossy and the nets nothing more than hanging threads. Dogmeat's ears shot up and he keened a low guttural sound that meant 'danger', Nate immediately dropped into a crouching position.

'What is it boy?' Nate asked in a hushed tone.

Dogmeat bent forward on his front paws and reared his back end slightly more up in the air, something he did when he was preparing to attack. 'So it's more your size than mine is that it?'

Dogmeat would not ordinarily have taken this stance if indeed the enemy was a Super-Mutant, because he knew enough that they seldom travelled alone, so Nate was able to determine that this predator was smaller.

Nate brought out his map slowly and quietly from his top pocket just under his combat armour. He realised that they were directly opposite what was once an animal hospital, it must have had dogs and the like still living there were the world went to pot. The decedents of whom must still be living close by. Nate did not want to fire his weapon this close to the Mutant's, neither did he want Dogmeat to go one-on-one with another dog that too would have been very noisy.

The decision was made. They would feel their way around the outside of the tennis court on to Courtland Avenue, from there they would make their way to the end of this stretch of the road where it turned left and continued up towards Baldwin Road. There was a thick cops of trees on his right, were the road bared left, the railway was on the other side of the trees.

Leaning on one of the concrete supports for the Baker Avenue Bridge Nate took out his map once more. To his right was a large open space where there was once a pond which was now dry, and on his left a single three story high building that looked like it was a laboratory or something similar.

On the right the ground dipped down alongside the track bed and Nate chose this as their route for the next ten minutes until they reached the Bridge over the Assabet River. From the Bridge one would have seen the Red Rocket Gas Station almost straight ahead but now there was nothing but a huge wide crater and lots of twisted metal, cars had been tossed about like a child's room might have looked after a temper tantrum.

'OK, Boy, there is no way forward from here so we are going to follow the river to our right, until we see the Nashoba Brook branching off on the left.' The walk was precarious for Nate as it was along the sunken river bank, nettles and brambles had grown like a thick wall in places so as to make a journey of five minutes seem like it had taken twice or three times longer.

The Nashoba Brook was about five maybe six feet across and its water very shallow so that it was easier to walk through than climb along either bank. Like the nettles and brambles, the water held no surprise or shock for Dogmeat, he just plodded through whatever was in front of him. Twenty minutes along this waterway and they reached a tunnel.

Many years before Nathan was born, this watercourse would have run straight into Warners Pond. Nate even recalled there being a set of lock gates like on a canal ahead and over to the right somewhere. At some point Commonwealth Avenue, West Concord, had taken priority over the water and it had been tunneled so that the road could run over it smoothly.

Nathan peered into the darkness his ears straining for any sound that might have been unfriendly, but there were none. 'Dogmeat, I hate to do this boy, but I really need you to go in there and scout ahead. You think you can do that, eh?'

The hound barked a single affirmative in the form a low, 'ruff!'

Whilst listening down the tunnel, Nathan began to hear what he could only think was the sound of drums and possibly other instruments. The wind was blowing in the opposite direction, away from him, so it made it difficult as he listened. He was suddenly startled by a loud screech, a shrill sound like a large vehicle might make after slamming on its brakes. Dogmeat had obviously made contact with something. Several more high pitched sounds mixed in with growls and the snapping of teeth followed, before all was silent once more in the tunnel.

Nathan pulled his night vision visor down over his eyes and moved forward in to the tunnel, as his feet splashed in the shallow water his nasal passages were assailed by the incredible stench of dead and decaying bodies. The night vision visor immediately picked out the movement ahead but before Nate could react he was forced to vomit.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw a figure lumbering towards him, it was low to the ground but fast. The visor reflected its long sharp incisor's and its equally large eyes. Nate needed to defend himself but couldn't stop the flow of vomit. Backing out of the tunnel, Nate managed to duck down just as the creature launched itself at him. About the size of a small dog, it catapulted its greasy black body from its haunches, Nate swung his weapon towards it catching it in mid-flight.

Its jaws snapped around the barrel of his CM 14 Combat Rifle only just missing his right hand, where Nate had held the weapon out from his torso. Nate swung the beast around smashing its dense body against the concrete tunnel entrance. It snarled like a rabid dog, foam coming from the corners of its mouth.

Nate swung it again this time toward the opposite side of the tunnel where broken iron railings waited to welcome the soft under belly of the beast. It gave out an ear splitting scream as it was driven on to one of the spikes. The CM 14 was bent and Nate threw it to the ground, drawing his CM 1911A1 .45 caliber pistol and pointing it straight down the tunnel as slick black creatures scrambled towards him.

The next critter to leap met Nates' out stretched right arm where he held the pistol, its powerful jaws opened mid-flight almost swallowing Nates hand. He pressed the trigger and the pistols hammer smashed the two front teeth that slid down the back of the weapon, threatening to bite into Nate's hand above his thumb. The second time the hammer depressed, a bullet was dispatched that tore through the centre of the creature. Killing it instantly.

Nate didn't care if he was heard now, Dogmeat was lost and he was out numbered. But incredibly the body of the creature acted like a silencer around the gun. Shot after shot hit one and then another until only one creature was left alive in the entrance of the tunnel.

The last creature to immerge from the tunnel entrance was twice the size of the others and its foul odour clawed at Nate's senses threatening to overpower him with its insane stare. Nathan raised his gun and pointed at the thing, covered in blood and filth, it stopped and just stared deep into his eyes as though pleading somehow for its wretched life. Or to be put out of it misery once and for all.

Nathan clenched his teeth and pulled the trigger.

Nothing happened. His clip was empty. Such was the madness that had gripped him in his desperate fight for survival, he had forgotten to count the shots. The beast seemed to relax sensing that it might live another day. Nathan slumped to the ground. There was no way he could reload in time.

He drew his right leg up towards his body and grabbed for his knife that was strapped to the bottom of his trouser leg. The beast lurched at that moment, it had timed its jump to get inside Nathan's lunge. The body of the beast knocked his forearm away, defecting the orientation of the blade and then it was on him. Its fangs but inches from his exposed face.

Nathan closed his eyes and thought of Cait. He felt the rough edge of its tongue scrape against the right side of his face. It withdrew and sneezed, sending a shower of blood and gore over Nate. He opened his eyes, 'Dogmeat! Is that really you boy?' and he wrapped both arms around his dog, his hands squelching in the goop that hung off its body.

'To think I tried to shoot you!'

Dogmeat for his part did seem genuinely happy that he didn't get shot, but he was wounded, Nate noticed as the dog turned away to look back down the Nashoba brook, 'Come here boy, just give me a minute and I'll get you sorted.' Nate washed away the filth from his hands and then unbuttoned a pouch on his utility belt.

'Don't know if this will work on you but here goes nothing.' Nate tore open a small sachet that contained sulfanilamide, a white powder form of infection prevention and a cauterizing agent.

'Well boy, that's that! We almost got killed before we had got started but it's given me an idea.'

Nathan looked at the dog and how covered in blood and guts he was, the smell was terrible, but Nate thought that if he did the same thing they might yet get through this mission without any more problems. Nate unbuckled his heavy combat armour and laid down his broken CM 14 rifle and then picked up one of the dead mole rats. He ripped out its insides and smeared them all over his vault suit turning the blue material a dark purple, almost black, colour.

The smell would mask their normal sent as well, but from here on in Nate had only his pistol and Dogmeat his teeth and claws. The decision was made to go above ground and not through the tunnel, it wasn't through fear of more mole rats but the strength of the smell.

The climb would have to be up the right hand side of the brook as the left side was now the outer edge of the crater that the exploding Red Rocket station had made. There were no buildings on this side just dense overgrown trees, bushes and tall grass. They made their way forward towards Warners Pond to Commonwealth Avenue.

Once they had reached the other end of the tunnel, Nate realised why there was such a terrible smell. The lock gate was packed tight with rotten bloated corpses of those who used to live in Sanctuary. Nate lost count at thirty four bodies, men, women and children. It had soon become apparent that the Mutants hadn't posted any guards and so the journey into and around Laws Brook Road was simple and straight forward. Here and there the smoke from the burning buildings was still wafting with the breeze.

Warner Street was a sparse affair having only one house on its left as you turned into it and a further six on the right that were all well-spaced out. Still no guards but now Nate could hear the noise more clearly. It was drums. 'Ok boy, from here on in we need to keep low and go unnoticed, do you think you can do that?' Nathan asked his faithful companion. Dogmeat gave a low 'ruff!' to indicate he got it.

Pistol in hand, Nate and the dog made their way slowly and carefully down Pond Street towards the damaged bridge. The ground changed from the green shuts of early spring into the churned up arena of battle, and the sight that now greeted the two was not one that Nate might have expected.

Like silent sentinels the entrance to Sanctuary was guarded, but not by huge green beast's of war. There like some macabre freak show exhibits stood ten poles, each standing no less than six feet tall and on top of them were the heads of the fallen, Nate immediately recognized Sturges head.

Nate shook his head, closed his eyes and said a silent prayer before looking back at the severed heads. 'Dogmeat we need to find someone alive, someone who can tell us what happened here, do you could find that someone?'

Dogmeat was eager to please, first he looked at the figures. Then he whined on recognizing an old friend, before looking back at Nate and going down on his haunches.

'You ready now? Good find 'em boy' Nate had every faith in his trusty hound after all hadn't Dogmeat tracked Conrad Kellogg all the way from Diamond City to Fort Hagan?

Dogmeat quickly made his way around to the left once they were over the bridge.

Nathan almost didn't recognize this way around the backs of the houses that led to the old footbridge, which once took Nate and his neighbors to vault 111. Now the brook had been dug out, deeper and wider and the foot bridge removed, the vault entrance remained up on the top of the hill but it was isolated from the rest of the area by a large concrete wall topped with barbed wire.

In between the houses, or what was left of them, Nate could see a large group of Mutants dancing and chanting around a large fire, pausing for a few minutes Nate was able to count their number as upwards of seventy. He patted the dog and told him well done for getting them this far, but Dogmeat was suddenly aware of something.

'What is it this time boy?' Nate inquired.

Dogmeat's ears went forward and he began to sniff the air, his head began to move wildly, first looking ahead then back at Nate and he issued a low keening sound almost as though he were trying to whistle. Nathan patted him again and then gently eased him forward saying, 'show me, come on, show me.'

This was the tricky bit, getting across the open ground between houses seven and nine, where the path to the vault and the bridge once lay. The ground used to drop down to the footbridge but now the water had levelled everything up and it needed skill, timing and a whole lot of luck to clear the dead ground without being seen.

They were both covered in thick sticky blood that had stained them both almost black, it had formed an almost natural camouflage against the war torn landscape, that and the fact that the smell masked them from all but someone or something stumbling over them. Alas the best laid plans of mice and men…

Nathan was holding on to Dogmeat's collar as they quickly ran across the open area, Nate was crouching best he could all the time looking to see if they had been noticed. Then it happened! As they pushed open the rear gate to number nine it had become stuck so that it wouldn't open enough for them to pass through. Still watching the open area Nate pushed against the gate with all his might, until it gave way, but it didn't open it snapped. The sound was not heard by anyone because of the dancing and chanting and general noise being made elsewhere. Except that was for the super mutant hound who had laid out across the back of the gate where he had been left on guard.

The muscular grey green beast was built like a fleshly battering ram, three quarters of a ton of solid muscle mass, and it didn't take to kindly to being awakened in this fashion. Nate fell forward as the gate gave way and the gate fell in pieces on top of the mutant hound. At first the thing just lazily opened one eye, and whimpered, then a second eye and then it heaved its incredible weight up on its feet, Nate sliding down its left flank and under its thick chin.

Dogmeat leapt straight on its back and sank his teeth deep into its back, the beast now erect raised its head high in order to groan out the dulcet tone of warning that Mutant hounds were renowned for. That was when Nate slammed his combat knife into its throat. Pushing the blade straight up until it hit the underside of its skull, blood gushed out like a burst water main.

The beast rolled back towards Nate threatening to flatten him as it toppled over to its left, only quick thinking prevented Nate from being crushed, literarily. So far embedded was Nate's knife that he found himself unable to pull it clear and thus retrieve it, if the hound was discovered then the knife would have been a dead giveaway.

Dogmeat wasted no time and was back on the trial of something, passed number eleven now and the only house left that made up the odd numbers was fifteen. Fifteen was the house with the rear storm cellar. Nate's hope were raised on the thought that Dogmeat might have found survivors because up until now he had seen none, out of the two hundred plus residents.

The wrought iron storm cellar doors had been torn away and a gaping black hole lay beneath Nate's feet, the cellar was empty of human life but all around there were mutilated bodies of Super-Mutants, someone or something had put up one hell of a fight. It was shortly thereafter that a tiny blue light caught Nate's eye from deep down in the blackness. Dogmeat ran to the edge of the cellar and peered down inside, barking softly but excitedly. 'What is it boy, is it friendly?' Nate asked the dog.

Dogmeat went down on his haunches as he did and sniffed vigorously before turning to Nate and almost nuzzling him down the steps. Nate may have lost both his CM 14 and his combat knife but thankfully he still had his pistol and flash light. The light barely pierced the all-consuming darkness but where it did it reveal, reluctantly a survivor, of sorts.

'Sir, is that you?' came the broken metallic voice.

'Codsworth!?' Nate almost tumbled the length of the ladder to get down to the faint light.

'Sir I'm sorry – if I'd have known you were coming home I'd have tidy up a bit!'

Nate didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

'Codsworth are you alright my old friend?' Codsworth was smashed almost obliterated, one cracked eye socket on a thin armature that was connected to his torso, even his stabilizing gyro's had gone.

'Codsworth we are going to get you out of here, I promise.' Nate bitterly spat the words out, and rage filled his heart.

'It's alright Sir, Don't mind me I'll be as right as rain once I've had an oil change, just you wait and see!'

Nate gently picked the wrecked robot up, scooping him in his arms like a mother might a new born child. Then he placed the long body across the back of Dogmeat. 'Let me strap him down to you boy, then we can get out of here and back to Preston and the others.'

'Stap me down, sir? I do beg your pardon but I am a type II Mister Handy, and I simple must insist that you do not under any circumstances strap me on to the back of that flee infested, …Sir what is all this sticky stuff,? I really must protest!'

'Codsworth, I promise you a shiny new everything once we get you out of here, but until then you need to pipe down and let us do our work.

'Harrumph!' was all that Codsworth uttered before falling silent completely.

Nate and Dogmeat were to retrace their steps back to the South Bridge Boat House, but first Nate wanted a closer look at something that had been bothering him for a few minutes now. Some of the Mutants were green as they should have been however most were not, they were a very definite greyish colour and their eyes were a bright burning red colour.

'Codsworth, did you notice anything strange about the mutants?'

'Strange sir? You mean like them attacking Sanctuary and killing every living thing? No sir I did not, why do you ask, oh and Dogmeat please stand still you are making feel quite sick.'

'Codsworth, I'm trying to understand what happened, now focus!'

'Sir might I suggest that you retrieve my appendages, in particular my round saw blade, it should have all the DNA you require I'm sure.'

'That's great Codsworth, did you get any footage on your eye camera's before they, err,'

'Before they ripped them out you mean, oh yes sir and everything is stored on my hard drive, now have you found that saw blade yet?'

'Here we are Codsworth, you don't mind me snapping the blade free do you only the rest of your arm is too big to carry?'

'Oh no sir, be my guest, it would seem that's now my lot in life, to have my arms ripped off and then bashed over the head with them.'

Preston Garvey was standing by a burning brazier talking quietly to a couple of guards when a corporal came looking for him at a rather hurried pace. 'Sir, please you must return with me to forward HQ.'

'Hey what's the rush, have we got word from Nate?' Preston sounded optimistic while knowing it was too soon.

'No Sir, but it's something equally as important!' the young Corporal said enthusiastically.

At the forward command post Preston was handed a field radio set, 'Garvey here, what's all the fuss?'

Lieutenant General, hold on to your hat, it's Maxson here in Boston.'

'OK Governor Maxson, what's got everyone so excited?'

'I have just been contacted by the Brotherhood and they are offering their assistance with our little mutant problem.'

'Have you been pulling strings Arthur?'

'No Preston, I can assure you they contacted me.'

'What's it all about exactly?' Preston held the receiver away from his face to inquire if they had heard from Nathan yet.

'Preston, Elder Hartley said that the Brotherhood have six hundred and forty seven men of all ranks, on standby in power armour suits, ready to come to our aid!'

'Arthur, with all due respect, you said come to our aid, what aid? We aren't either under attack or at war. Heck, Nathan hasn't returned from his Recon mission yet, so I ask you again, come to our aid?'

'Preston, we know from our own records that there are upwards of five hundred Super-Mutants on the Green Mountain reservation, and that we have lost communications with one settlement and two forward supply and trading post's. We have to accept that we are facing over whelming odd's even with our mechanized units, we are simply out gunned.'

'Arthur you just can't let six hundred plus knights march into the Commonwealth on its first day, we have an army, a very well trained army. Look! I'm not saying we don't want them what I am saying is at least let us wait until Nate returns.'

'Preston they have been good enough to share their Intel with me and they say that our figures are wrong, the Super-Mutants numbers are much higher, they put them at around eight hundred.'

'How? It isn't like they can breed or anything, I just can't except that Arthur, I'm sorry.'

'They aren't breeding Preston they have sent out a call to arms, to all the other Super-Mutants within a hundred mile radius.'

'Arthur I am blind and I am at the front line, you are in Boston, I say we wait until Nate gets back and that's my final position.'

'OK, Preston I understand, I will however redirect those Brotherhood forces to Nashua. It's a large settlement in the former state of New Hampshire, they number over six thousand residents and they have requested our help.'

'Arthur that's fine by me, if nothing else they will be protecting our right flank.'

Governor Maxson wasted no time in replying to Elder Hartley and though they had doubts about each other and the long term goals, they both agreed that Super-Mutants were a common enemy.


	12. Chapter 12

CHAPTER TWELVE

'Dogmeat, what is it boy? Come on we need to get back, why are you stopping?' Nate was overtly aware of them both riding their luck, they had infiltrated the Super-Mutant camp and retrieved Codsworth. Staying a minute longer was asking for trouble. However, something was bugging the dog, he kept lifting his nose in the air and sniffing and then whining softly like he had found something.

'Alright Dogmeat, what? You think there are survivors, is that it?'

Dogmeat barked once, his way of saying yes.

'Where are they? Can you track them?'

Nathan unstrapped the broken robot from Dogmeat's back and instead clipped his helmet camera to the back of the animal's collar. 'Codsworth, do you think you can tap into my helmet cameras' frequency and display what it records?'

'Oh sir I think I can go one better!' the metallic voice rasped.

'Codsworth you are just brilliant!'

'Thank you sir, now if you could attach your helmet comm-link to the camera as well, and then turn your hand set on, I should be able to sync them so that you have a live voice link between you and whoever is out there.'

'Dogmeat, are you all set?'

The faithful friend muffled a single bark once again to show he understood and was ready.

Nathan stroked the side of Dogmeat's head just below his ear and patted his head gently before sending him on his way.

Dogmeat was able to pass in and around the many dead bodies of both human and mutant with relative ease, he looked after all like a mutant mole rat, and smelled no different. The Super-Mutants who watched him weaving in and out of the bodies paid him little or no heed, neither did their mutant hounds who had all gouged themselves on far too much human flesh.

The house that the dog made for was over the other side of Sanctuary to Nate, it was situated on the right were the close ended in a circle. Codsworth identified it as the former home of the Whitfield family and Nate spoke out loud, 'the family from number ten.'

Unusually for a house holding captives it was left unguarded, Nate made a mental note of that fact, as Dogmeat proceeded to circle the building in an attempt to find a way inside.

One of the small coloured square panels that lead directly into the utility room was loose, and Nate using the comm-link, was able to tell the dog to prize the panel lose which he did.

Once inside the dog made his way straight to the humans, they were all small children and they were shocked and deeply traumatized by the week's events. Nate knew now that no amount of talking to any of them would get them to even understand the word escape let alone actually get them to try it. Nate thought about getting round there himself and trying to free them, but even he had to concede this was not a task for a single person.

'Dogmeat come here boy, come back to me and we will figure this out.'

Dogmeat walked amoungst the huddled frightened children licking one or two here and there, nuzzling others and allowing yet more to reach out and pet him. For a dog, all his instinct was telling him was to disobey his masters' command and to stay here with these children. But the pull of his master's voice and the faith he had in him set him on his course.

Several minutes had passed by before the dog was able to retreat back to where Nate and Codsworth were hold up and it was during this time that Nate had made his mind up. He would stay and Codsworth and Dogmeat would return to Concord.

Once again Codsworth found himself, or what was left of him, strapped to the back of the dog. 'OK Dogmeat, off you go! Go find Cait and Preston!'

The hound began to bound away seemingly with the energy and intelligence to carry out his solo mission, only to stop thirty feet or so away, turn and stand looking back at Nate. He would waive the dog on and in a hushed tone tell him, 'go boy go.' But the dog would troop back whining as it did so. Several times they went through this same routine until Nathan had completely lost his patience, first he tried throwing a stick at Dogmeat.

The dog brought the stick back and dropped it enthusiastically at his feet. Then Nathan sent him away again and threw small pebbles at the dog once he had stopped to look back. Dogmeat just sat and waited until Nathan had no more stones to chuck and promptly wandered back to his master.

Nathan sent the dog away for the hundredth time and when it stopped to look back Nathan drew his pistol and pointed it straight at the animals head. 'Go boy. Go!'

Dogmeat sighed and whined but seemed to finally understand, he turned tail and bounded away into the evenings' fading light.

As the evening grew darker the Super-Mutants four day long celebrations began to peter out, and that was when Nathan had decided to make his move. Still camouflage in dried blood and guts he crept his way along the outside of the odd numbered houses back towards the storm cellar.

Hiding in a hedge row that had now become overgrown and entangled with a white picket fence, Nate watched and waited. This area at the back of number fourteen was particularly foul since it had been used as cesspit by the Mutants, the once green grass was now awash with excrement, old blood, skulls and broken bones.

Amoungst the detritus stood a Super-Mutant with his back turned to Nate, he had propped his weapon up against the smoldering remains of the house. Nate could hardly believe his eyes or his luck, the weapon was a .30 calibre Browning automatic rifle or BAR for short, and it was fitted with a Cutts recoil compensator and noise suppressor.

Nate snatched the weapon up, first checking that it was loaded before aiming at the back of the mutants head and firing off a single round. The Mutant toppled head first into his own waste fluid, dead. Nate chambered a second round, still crouching he made his way through the rear garden of waste and on to number twelve. No one or thing had heard the shot.

Crouching once more Nate made his way between the rears of number fourteen and number twelve which cut across the track that led to the armoury. The once solid stone tower was now nothing more than ash and broken masonry, but it gave the General an idea. The water was shallow here and so even the youngest of the children ought to able to make it across.

The gap between numbers twelve and ten, ten being were the children were being held, was the widest and most exposed. At the rear tall corn stalks once grew, planted by Nathan's own hands some six years previously, and how he wished that they still stood as they would have afforded him good cover. Nathan searched for the broken wall panel were Dogmeat had gained entry but from this distance and in the fading light he could not make it out. He would need to move closer still.

With his B.A.R. pointing forward and his body holding as low to the ground as he could without toppling over, Nathan inched is way towards the back of house number ten. He had made his way inside the white stained picket fence so that he would only be visible, for this part of the journey, from inside the house. His feet conspired to betray his position because even though the land was sodden with spilled blood and the corn all trampled flat the dried out leaves cracked under foot.

Four or five times he stopped dead fearing that the sound must now be heard since the hypnotic beat of the drums along with the chanting and dance had long since stopped. Indeed his feet had barely moved another foot and a large brutish looking mutant hound had raised its ugly head in his direction.

His right knee reached the ground and he butted the stock of his weapon firmly into his right shoulder, his keen right eye then followed closely the movement of the hound. Beads of sweat started to form across his brow before running in rivulets down his face. The hound was looking straight at him but alas it could not understand just what it was that it viewed, so covered in gore and camouflaged by it was he.

Nate's right hand tightened around the grip of his weapon, his finger press so lightly against its trigger, should he fire or should he wait? The decision was taken away from him by a non-descript Super-Mutant who was standing with his back to Nathan, but over at number six were his power armour stand was still located. The green goliath had hap-hazardly thrown a human leg bone away over its shoulder which had landed, with a splosh, across the left flank of the hound as it lay spread out on the ground.

The mutant hound had sealed its own fate as it turned its head to sniff the human leg but instead of taking it in its teeth, returned instead to look over to Nate's exact position. Nate fired a single round which hit the mutt right between its eyes, exploding its head and eviscerating its body as the bullet tore right through the length of the creature.

The sound was so soft even in the still of the early evening that it drew no attention what-so-ever. Nathan edged forward once more, so what emboldened by the day's events so far. There was the loose panel, now only an outstretched arm away, but first he must loosen his grip on his rifle.

At that precise moment lady luck deserted the former vault dweller completely. Even has his hand reached out to touch the bottom right corner of the wall tile liquid like water began to rain down on his head. It splattered against his helmet lining, his helmet now was left far behind at the rear of number nine. Nathan thought it so unusual that this liquid now pored upon his head and nowhere else he forced himself to look up.

It just so happened that at that precise moment the guard, a single Super-Mutant warrior who had been left all evening in the house with the child had decided to relieve himself through the window above the broken panel. As Nathan looked up the waste water began to wash the blood and gore from his head and face.

The moon was arcing high into the night's sky and its glare shone upon the General's face, illuminating it has though the mutant had Shon a torch upon it rather than having just urinated. 'HUMAN!' the cry had broken the fragile peace of the evening. 'Here he is!' the voice sounded in shocked surprise.

Nathan took the only course of action that was left open to him, first he dispatched the unfortunate mutant, and then he retreated as fast as he could across the shallows and into the interior of the ruins of the armoury. Most of the Super-Mutants had given up looking for him even before they had started, as they hadn't bothered to look inside the house were the children were, and so didn't find either who had sounded the alarm or his body.

Sometimes the best thing about having a partner was that you could bounce ideas off them, whether you actually wanted their advice or not. Nate had found himself in an impossible situation with nobody's opinion but his own. 'Damned if I do and damned if I don't!' he whispered to himself.

Whatever the Super-Mutants were doing it wasn't very obvious or visible in Sanctuary, it was almost as though they had worn themselves out after days of celebrating. Nate needed to move and move quickly, back to the house were the children were being held. Once inside he made sure that the children were as well as they could be and all in one room.

He had counted only eight the eldest being fourteen and the youngest three years old. If Nate had wanted to remove them he would have to carry them two at a time across open ground. That was not an option or a plan, so they would stay, and he would have to barricade the doors and windows as best he could.

The children were all in the main sitting room which once served as a kitchen as well, the breakfast bar was now across the front door with the children fetching and carrying anything they could to heap on it. Eventually as the two bedrooms were stripped of useful items of furniture Nate filled the corridor up from the bedrooms to the main sitting room. The windows were covered with wardrobes and a double bed frame along with the old sofa.

The children were then corralled in the centre of the sitting room behind cushions and mattresses. All that was left was for Nate to check his weapon and count the remaining ammunition.

During the night the children managed to sleep while Nate kept on guard, there were noises all around outside but not once did anyone attempt to enter the house. At about three twenty in the morning Nate was aware that somewhere on the outside of the building someone or something was tapping, knuckles against the metal plates that formed the outer skin of the house. It was all he could to keep awake let alone wonder who or what was making the sounds.

Somewhere between sleep and outright insanity he suddenly wondered if it were a code?

' . . pause, dot. Pause. . . pause, . . Pause. . pause. .dot. pause. . . pause. Dot. Pause. Dot. Dash. Dot. Pause. Dot.'

It was! Nate recognized the series of dots and dashes, it was Morse code. Immediately he listened again for the direction it was coming from. The back window in the corner nearest the wall, Nate scrambled over there keeping low, not that he thought that it might be a trap, but that he didn't want to startle any of the children.

The code became apparent on the third time of hearing, it read "Help is here." Nate hastily tapped out a reply. 'Dash. Dot. Pause. Dot. Dash. Pause. Dash. Pause. Dot. Pause. Dot. Dot. Pause. Dot. Dot. Dot. Pause. . . pause. Dot. Pause. Dot. Dash. Dot. Pause. Dot.'

(Nate is here). Nathan looked up towards the window and between the gaps in the barricade he could just about make out the face of a very old friend.

Quickly he removed the furniture that was against that window and opened it gently so as not to make any loud noises. 'Longfellow, is that really you?' Nathan was almost over whelmed by emotion as he took in the shock of white hair that threatened to escape from under a beret and the trim white beard that hid a wise battle hardened face beneath.

'Colonel William Travis Longfellow of the Far Harbor Militia, better known as the Longfellow Rangers, come to escort you home, General, Sir!' The old man whispered.

'How in the name of god did you find me Bill? This isn't exactly Far Harbor!'

'No sir it is not, but you can thank Dogmeat and that robot you strapped to his back.'

'How many men do you have with you? I have eight children in here and only one is old enough to walk by himself.'

'I brought nine including myself, so my men can grab a kid each if you can pass them through the window.'

'Bill is there any sign of the Mutants?' Nate asked, suddenly remembering the large green skinned threat.

'Yeah, we counted a few staggering around but nothing like a guard detail or anything, so if we are quick we can get you all out of here in one piece.'

'Where are the rest of your men?' Nate inquired, knowing that they would be hidden out of view covering the retreat.

'I've got twelve at the ruined building behind us and a further eleven on the far bank covering our sixes.' (A military term that meant backs.)

Once the last of the children were out through the window Nate told old Longfellow to begin his retreat, Nate would need to go through the front door as he was too large to fit through the window. Pulling the barricade away had been harder than placing it there and twice before he had cleared everything away items slipped and bumped or clattered to the ground.

As Nate placed his hand on the door knob it was already turning, someone or something was trying to enter. Nate stepped back from the door while reaching for his B.A.R that was strung across his back. The door was pushed towards him just as he levelled his rifle up at the throat of a Super-Mutant.

Almost as soon as the shocked creature had begun to suck air into its lungs in order to shout the word, "human", Nate had fired a single shot up into its throat. Blood poured from the wound but it wasn't a killing blow as it should have been, and that was when Nathan recognized that this Mutant was not a large green giant, but a large grey skinned one instead.

The creatures hands clasped tightly around Nathan's throat ignoring the open wound at its own throat. Nathan rammed the nozzle of his gun right up into the wound and he fired one more time. This time the beast stepped back and his leathery fingered grip on Nathan loosened.

Staggering backwards and beginning to moan the mutant fumbled to draw his own gun, just then a crossbow bolt smashed right through its temple and it fell down dead where it had taken its last step. Old Longfellow hadn't been required to carry a child and so doubled back around the front of the house just in time to aid Nathan.

Between Nathan and Longfellow's rangers, the children were taken to safety with the minimal of incident. It wasn't too many minutes before the group were scrambling up the opposite bank of Warners Pond and away towards the rendezvous point. During the enforced march old Longfellow had recalled to Nate how Dogmeat had waltzed into Cait's camp with the robot on his back.

Preston had immediately called for Professor Scara and her team so that they could reboot the robot and then download all of his Intel. The video feed had shown them where the children were and Cait had said that is we would find you. The conversation was put on hold as the large group approached the Concord Turnpike were they would turn south towards Elm Street.

After walking a further two miles in silence until they reached their destination, the sign read, "Concord Gas and Carwash". This was where the rangers had hid their vehicles. Nate was eager to know more and pressed old Longfellow for answers as the group broke into smaller units and climbed on to their transport.

Old Longfellow told quite a tale, how he had been asked to take over the Militia that Nate had formed on Far Harbor Island, how the Children of the Atom had changed their belief from death and destruction to reconciliation and re-construction; thanks to Nate exchanging their radioactive showers to clean water.

None of which explained their arrival in the Commonwealth, so during the fifteen minute drive back to Concord old Longfellow found himself continuing his story. For the most part the Super-Mutants seemed happy to be left alone in the confines of the old VIM factory, they traded food and goods with any passing caravan via the bridge that lead over to the island that the factory was on.

Everything seemed straight forward and peaceful for years, the people of Far Harbor debated joining the Commonwealth every year but seemed happy to read about it in the papers rather than actually set anything more solid up, and that's how it stayed until a few months ago.

A mercurial figure from the past appeared, out of the blue. He was a Super-Mutant that old Longfellow knew but didn't think Nate had ever met, he was called Erickson. He had originally come too Far Harbor with a group of other mutants who were led by a behemoth called Grun, and they were the original ones who set up camp in the old factory.

Grun and Erikson had fallen out and Erikson either left or was banished, he set up camp in the wreckage of a crashed airplane just north of the Children of the Atom's base at Nucleus.

Old Longfellow said that he didn't know why but Erikson returned to the VIM factory, Grun was dead; Nate had killed him, and the new leader relinquished his status on Erikson's arrival.

It was shortly after Erikson arrived that things started to change. Erikson sounded a lot like how Nathan had described Brian Virgil, more human than mutant, none the less the mutants began to act differently, they became more musical, both chanting, dancing and the playing of drums.

Then about a two weeks ago they disappeared, the whole colony of mutants had moved out and a island wide search brought no word. It was if they had all disappeared, then the rangers came across tracks that led to the ocean, and evidence seemed to point to the fact that they had procured boats and had all left the island. At first nobody seemed that bothered then word came of the massacre in Sanctuary.

Nathan asked how they had received news in Far Harbor, and old Longfellow explained that the newspapers were full of it, so Captain Avery had proposed a motion that the rangers be sent to aid the Commonwealth. On our way south we ran into an army from the Brotherhood of Steel, they were from somewhere way out west, they too had been tracking a "nation" of Super-Mutants who had upped sticks and left their homeland, and here we are.

The Brotherhood of Steel army was of great interest to Nate but old Longfellow was unable to tell him anything more than they camped somewhere outside the Commonwealth and that as far as he knew they were still there now.


End file.
